Extend to Infinity and Beyond
by Khorose
Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arise, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.
1. The Calm Before the Storm

**=ch1=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arise, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

**AN: This is AU, which means 'Alternate universe' or 'Alternative universe'. Which means that the things in canon did not happen, a killing notebook don't exist, and Death Note is a regular diary without any supernatural powers.  
**

* * *

_Chapter 1: The Calm Before the Storm  
_

_What's done is done  
There is still a sun.  
Rebuild the shelter, invite all in.  
Maybe we'll survive when the Storm begins._

* * *

"Are we there yet?" A chorus of voices complained. A black car sped down the dirt road inside a forest. It was getting dark, it was raining, and the mood inside the car was miserable.

The sky was grey and cloudy, thick mist shrouded the scenery, and the forest trail was steep and bumpy. The forest was a secluded place in Japan, and could almost be described as a rain forest, had the animals there not been so few. All they got there are woodland creatures rabbits; squirrels; snakes; and raccoons.

But this unlikely group was heading here for a reason, to to L's summer home as a vacation and bonding time (according to Watari) to get to know each other more. Some of the kids just recently joined the group, like Near, who came a few weeks ago, and Light who had reluctantly joined them a month before that.

Watari sighed behind the steering wheel. It was not easy babysitting six rowdy kids, and it was practically suicide to confine them all in such a tight space.

The eldest child, L Lawliet, was sixteen years old. Yet all he could do was to munch on a cookie as he watched the others bicker about. He had messy black hair that swept sideways to his left, like it was attacked by a giant hair-dryer. It was messy, very much so. His big, wide eyes made him look like a child younger than he actually was. He wore a simple white shirt and baggy jeans, and no shoes whatsoever.

Fifteen-years-old Light Yagami was not doing well either. He was trying to get his diary back from Beyond Birthday. The thirteen-years old was cackling as he dangled the black notebook from Light's reach. Light kept his chestnut-colored hair neat, even though he wove around Beyond in trying to snatch his book. His face was scrunched up and angry, like a child pulling a tantrum.

Beyond dressed similar as L, but his shirt was black instead of white, and he wore sneakers. His hair was slightly neater than L's, and it was longer too, hanging down to his shoulders instead of being swept sideways. His eyes, the most remarkable feature on his face, was red. It was the bright shade of red you would probably associate with rubies or any other glowing gems, and his pupils are ringed with a circle of white.

Beside them in the back seats, seven years old Mello was pulling on eight years old Matt's hair, and five years old Near was trying to pull his white teddy bear from the crevice where it was stuck in.

Mello wore a leather jacket, and a fuzzy scarf made of animal fur, a gun was strapped to his belt, and his blond hair constantly reminded of a walnut. Matt had red hair and had glasses on, and his hands were fiddling with an electronic device, even when Mello pulled on his hair for his attention.

Near had only looked away from his plush bear for a second, but it was enough for it to fall - and wedge itself into the space between his seat and the floor. He pulled on it, but it refused to budge.

"Give it back!" Light wailed, trying to get his diary. The two of them wrestled for a moment, but Beyond used the advantage of his longer limbs (despite the fact that he was younger than Light) to keep it out of the other boy's reach.

"Not a chance," Beyond smirked, then started flipping through the pages, "Ooo, Death Note. Interesting name for a diary. And what's this? You're writing stories? Of our deaths? I'm honored," he snickered. The scratched up letters of the Death Note was written in white, while the entire cover was black. Inside the yellow pages, there are short stories and rants, everything Light write here to expel his anger.

"I- I have anger management issues, okay?" Light gritted his teeth, "Now hand it over!"

Beyond rolled his eyes, "You're such a wuss, keeping a diary in your age. I can't believe you're older than me."

"L wannabe!"

"Cocoanut-head!"

"Atheist! "

"Narcissist!"

"Boys," Watari said at the front, "My patience is wearing thin. We've got ten minutes left until we get to L's summer home. Stop bickering, and settle down."

The noise creased from inside the car, leaving only nervous breathing and the splatter of rain hitting the window. The next ten minutes were silent except for crunches from L biting down on the cookie. Nobody dared to breathe and risk Watari's wrath, and for those who had experienced it before, it was the most frightening thing in your life. The car rocked again, and the mist was fading - revealing their destination.

The car suddenly screeched to a halt and stopped in front of a huge mansion. It was white, with ivy wrapped around some of the pillars supporting the tall building. Rows upon rows of window appeared on the sides, and statues were carved at the side of the gate. On the door, elegant patterns were engraved on it, and the garden was large. Rose bushes poke out from the sides, and there was even a lake at the sides. The children's jaws dropped upon seeing it.

"L... _this_ is your summer home?" Mello asked incredulously. The others couldn't believe it either, "This..house.. You're RICH and you didn't tell me!" He exclaimed.

Beside them, Light was a bit stunned too. It seemed that one cannot judge L by his cover. Based on his scrawny looks and cheap clothes, one would have never assumed L to have this much money. But then again, they should have expected this. L was very good at his job after all.

"I am the world's greatest detective. I don't solve cases for free. I completed every single case I ever came upon. What do you think?" L's tone was bland, and he spoke slowly, as if telling something to a dumb child. Even though all (except for Watari) of them _are_ children.

"You never told us..." Mello repeated, still shocked. In the end, Matt had to physically drag him inside of the house and out of the rain. Black clouds rumbled ominously in the distance, the weather became heavier, like an air of foreboding, and a storm is fast approaching.

There was still a bit of sun outside, but it was decreasing little by little. Watari was worried, he had only brought three days worth of food. They were prepared to stay here for two days, but judging by the size of the storm, he might not have packed enough. It may last days and days while they would be stuck here without any connections to the outside.

Luckily, the distance between here and the next town is very close. If they get past this house and through the other side of the woods, there would be a village with plenty of food and a police station there. There are also phones, but only out of the woods. Watari spent the next few hours showing the children around the town, and have them memorize the path from there to back.

"It would be hard to get there while the storm is at its peak, so we'd better stock up now," Watari commented as he bought the bag of hot chocolate. Beyond saw the jars of jam they bought, and began to devour them like no tomorrow.

"We're going to run out of jam, you know,." L sighed as he watched his backup acting like a child.

"I could say the same to you and your cake," Beyond retorted, his moth sticky.

When it got dark, and trickles of rain came down, it was decided to go to L's summer-house. They read the map on the layout of the mansion, and were surprised at how many secret passages and rooms there were.

"There's no internet connection here," Matt announced glumly, standing in the hallway like a dejected little puppy. He gave a sigh as he hit another button on his computer, and came up with nothing.

"Of course there isn't," Mello snorted, "We're in the middle of a secluded forest far away from civilization. Idiot."

"Hey!"

"Besides, we aren't here for playing video games, Matt. You can do that any time back home," Near said softly. Mello looked briefly surprised that Near was supporting him, but then turned back.

"Yeah! Like he said."

Matt muttered angrily before shuffling to the living room, where Watari had a fire going in the fireplace. L was sipping hot chocolate, Beyond was in an intense game of cards with Light. The two were arguing about something ridiculous, as they always had, and was now debating over the proper names to give to the fish on the cover.

Beyond was conveniently seated facing _away_ from the fire, and the furthest from it. Many of the others were eying him strangely, but he only gritted his teeth and demanded to continue playing the game.

"Any threes?"

"Go Fish."

" No! You're supposed to say 'Go Shark' or something! Sharks are cool, and 'Go Fish' just makes no sense!"

"... But it's really called-"

"No. Sharks eat fish. Sharks are superior to fish, that's why it should be named 'Go Shark'!"

"But humans eat shark!"

"Well, 'Go Human' it is, then!"

"Oh yeah? Sharks also eat humans, so it's still 'Go Shark'!"

"Go Human!"

"Go Shark!"

"Go Human!"

"Go Shark!"

"GO HUMAN AND THAT'S FINAL!"

"GO SHARK AND SHOVE IT UP YOUR ASS!"

"GO HUMAN AND KICK YOU IN THE BALLS!"

"GO SHARK AND EAT YOU WHOLE!"

"You do know that this is the strangest conversation I ever heard?" L said drily from his chair, "Besides, death claim all living creatures, so shouldn't it be called 'Go Death'?"

"L! Not you too!" Matt stared at the detective, aghast.

"No," Beyond said firmly, ignoring Matt, "Death isn't a being, so that doesn't count. But it could be called 'Go Shinigami'."

"Shinigamis aren't real, B."

"Of course they are," Beyond snorted softly, "Believe it or not, I'm a Shinigami-human hybrid. Which is why I have red eyes and can see names and life-spans of people."

"Liar."

"How sad," Beyond said sarcastically, "Don't come crying to me when you're dead and didn't listen to my warning, Lawli."

"Don't call me that!"

"Uh, guys?" Light asked, "B, any fives?"

Beyond blinked, "Nope. Go Shinigami."

Matt had to laugh at that, "If you twist the rules to be more interesting, then I think I will join you two in playing 'Go Shinigami'."

They shrugged, "Go ahead."

Beyond smirked, "Go ahead? Maybe, but heads can't beat a shark OR a human."

Light whacked him, "You know what I meant."

In the background, Watari smiled fondly. Things are always interesting when you stick a bunch of child geniuses inside a room together. They tend to argue, but otherwise put their intelligent brains together. With more training, they would work flawlessly together into an unstoppable team. But the problem is, they _don't_ work together flawlessly, or at all.

Meanwhile, Near and Mello were exploring the building. The hallways connecting the rooms together are large, and unthinkably long. They could barely see the speck of light that was the kitchen on the other side of the room, and this hall was straight. It was very spooky to walk around by yourself, and way too easy to get lost.

"There's a ton of unused rooms in here," Near spoke up. His voice echoed on the walls, bouncing across the halls, and piles of dust fell around them. Mello wrinkled his nose.

"'Course, L don't come here very much, obviously," Mello said, "Let's check all the rooms to search for any secret chocolate stashes."

"Not everybody's obsessed with chocolate, Mello."

"Really? Well nobody understands the simple pleasures of life, I suppose," Mello snorted.

"... I think chocolate is a substance that corrupts the brain, gives you cavities, and melt into big, sticky messes."

"Blasphemy!"

Near shook his head, "No, I'm just correcting an idiot from getting diabetes."

"I think L's the closest of all of us to get it, and WHAT did you just call me?!"

"True, L consumes more sugar than all of us combined, but we have not yet seen any affects it had on him. Sometimes I wonder if the sugar jut goes to a different place once it enters his mouth."

"His brain, perhaps it's sugar-powered?" Mello laughed,

"There's a 73% chance on that."

"First B, now you? Why is everybody trying to become L?"

"... Because that's why we enrolled in Wammy's house in the first place?"

Mello flushed angrily, "I know that! But isn't it creepy how you imitate his every move? How he acts, how he looks, and how he thinks? L is really a title, we don't really have to act like that all the time!"

"You do know that B and I have tried it, and now B and I are both above you in the ranking list."

Mello fumed, but didn't say a word. The two walked on silently, passing by a lot of rooms. The light was still on, but the creaking of the floor was creaking loudly. It was creepy, and the two kids didn't like it. A creeping feeling made the back hair of the back of their necks stand up, and it was like invisible eyes followed them from the paintings that decorated the hall.

"I feel like we're being watched," Mello muttered. A tense atmosphere settled as they continued. Near hadn't said a word, dragging his teddy bear close to him.

A while later, the feeling disappeared and the two reached the kitchen. Watari looked surprised to see them there.

"You could have gotten lost trying to find your way here!"

"The hallway's straight," Near deadpanned. Mello muffled a snicker.

"Still it was brave of you two to come a long way here," Watari commented as he continued to make hot chocolate for everybody. Mello bounced eagerly as he watched.

"I want extra marshmallows!"

"Me too."

And with the company of Watari, the two made their way safely back to the living room. L, Beyond, and Light was still playing that card game, and Matt was twitching on the floor. They had gotten fire started in the fireplace, and some of them were roasting marshmallows - or putting them into hot chocolates.

But none of them knew that what Mello had said was true, they're being watched.

A person hurried back to an unknown place, and started plotting.

* * *

**Hi, it's me, Khorose!**

**I have decided to try writing a mystery fic. I've planned each chapter from here to the epilogue, and it will be your job to try to solve it before the end!  
**


	2. When the Sun Sets

**=ch2=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arise, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 2: When the Sun Sets  
_

_And the raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting_  
_On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;_  
_And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,_  
_And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor;_  
_And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor_  
_Shall be lifted - nevermore!_

* * *

"Matt is going insane without his video games," Mello commented as he watched his friend from the corner of his eyes.

Matt bouncing in his seat, shivering as though feeling an icy breeze. He twitched ever so often, hands moving forward, to grasp something, only to realize it wasn't there. Beads of sweat rolled down his forehead, and his eyes were wide and desperate. His mouth parted to form the words, "Need...computers...now..."

"Electronic withdraw," Beyond commented casually, "He's having a break-down."

Of course, this was a normal occurrence, so there was no need for alarm. Whenever Matt was grounded from his electronics, he always struggled through the week like this. The Wammy boys were used to it, and honestly, this was a bit funny.

"Oi, B, focus on the game," They were playing dominoes, the first one who made them topple loses. Near had joined as well, and his control was so delicate that he could stack each domino vertically on top of each other.

They had changed the rules for a bit. As long as you put a domino there somewhere beside the last one, you would be fine. But when Near stacks them up like this, it was almost impossible to win. Nobody had the skills and precision he did, and even if you managed to put a domino vertically on top of another, each time got harder, and even more difficult.

After fifty minutes of losing, Beyond was getting really annoyed. There's got to be something else they could play. But the Wii had run out of batteries, which was why Matt was freaking out in the first place. There were no board games in this place, L did not want to play those silly trivia cards that he could answer as a toddler. Puzzles are too easy. There are no games for adults because most grown-ups believed that they don't need something so silly, but the games for kids had all those creepy cartoon characters whose eyes are more unnerving than L's.

And L didn't like that, so he burned them. Beyond had laughed because he was positive that L _liked_ being creepy, and did not want competition. But only L noticed the discomfort in Beyond's eyes as he eyed the pile of smoldered paper, and only the two knew why.

"Dammit," Mello swore as the pile crumbled. He fingered the pieces tightly and glared at it, already plotting to burn the pile of dominoes burning to ashes along with Near.

"Sore loser, eh?" Beyond said, as if reading his mind, "You're so predictable."

"I win, again," Near declared smugly. The five-years old plopped his white teddy bear beside him, and pretended to feed it marshmallow from his hot chocolate. The plush polar bear simply sat there limply, though it was as bit as Near himself. The two of them did look-alike, with the bear's fur and Near's white hair, and how they can stare at you for a long time without blinking...

"Damn you!" Mello shouted, throwing a piece of domino to the floor, "I will beat you one day, Near!"

"Mello, don't swear in front of children!" Watari berated him.

"He started it!" Mello shouted stubbornly.

In a fit of childishness, Near stuck his tongue out, and cuddled his teddy bear further. Mello's eyes twitched at the obvious taunt.

"That's it, you little-"

"Mello!"

Deciding it was getting boring, Beyond turned back to Matt, only to see him gone. His previous seat was vacant, and it seemed like he had left long ago while the others were still absorbed in the game.

"Where did he go?" Beyond asked Mello.

"He went to the washroom. Probably to take a shower." Mello shrugged.

"Do you know where the jam is?"

"... What jam?"

Beyond felt like the one having a nervous breakdown now, "Strawberry jam. Didn't Watari bring some for coming here? From the village?!"

Behind them, L commented, "I'm sorry, but I believe you have eaten every single jar we had. So there wasn't any left to bring here."

Beyond's jaws dropped, "You're not serious, right?"

"Very."

Beyond felt like crying. But instead, he just hit the floor with a thump, and didn't get up again. The others craned their neck to see Beyond having a fit on the floor.

"Stop being so melodramatic, B," Near commanded, and strangely enough, Beyond listened.

"Lawwwwwwwwli!" he whined, "Can't we go out into the woods and pluck out berries to make jam? Pleeeeese!" He mad big, watery chibi eyes at L.

"Stop that, it's disturbing."

"But my jam! I really really really really need my jam!" Beyond cried, fists pounding the floor.

L sighed, "B, there's a storm outside. How are you going to go out there?" His words was accompanied by a thunder-clap, "And I _did_ tell you that we wouldn't have enough if you kept eating it."

"I'll find a way!"

Mello rolled his eyes, "Just shut up and deal with it, you big sissy," he scoffed.

Beyond glared at him, "What would you do then, once we ran out of hot chocolate?" He demanded.

Mello froze, his eyes going huge. "... That IS a problem. Count me in!"

L facepalmed.

"Hey, where's Matt?" Light asked. He had just came in and was looking around the room. Heads turned toward him and L briefly wondered where he was during the hour. Light's normally neat hair was a bit out-of-place, and he was panting like he had just ran a marathon.

"Bathroom."

"I might have believed that an _hour_ ago," Light replied, "Don't you find it weird he's been away for that long?

Near nodded, "A shower takes about 15 minutes, brushing teeth takes ten, a bath is half an hour. None of these things takes this long."

"I'm not even going to ask why you know things like that," Light groaned.

"Something's wrong," L decided, and everybody hurried down the hall.

(An Hour Earlier)

Matt felt scared, walking down the abandoned floor alone like this. The floor creaks like Roger's back! And not to mention that strange feeling he got. It was almost like he was being watched...

_Now I'm getting paranoid,_ Matt thought while shaking his head. It's just an old house, his friends are all downstairs, it's safe... Was it?

_Just a quick trip to the bathroom, that all it is._ He reassured himself.

His feet made _click clack_ sounds under the wooden floor, in his hand he held a flashlight because the ones down the hallways are too old to use Total darkness surrounded the places that wasn't lit by the light. It was just like a horror movie, The redhead decided.

Matt reached the bathroom and paused, listening. Earlier, he had the feeling that his footsteps were too loud and numerous to match the amount of steps he took. Did that mean somebody was following him?

He stopped, and the footsteps stopped, but not before making another step. Matt smirked, glad it was actually a person, not a ghost.

"Who"s following me?" He asked bravely, "Mello? Beyond? Light?"

There was no answer, but the footsteps started again, this time not caring if they were being heard.

Suddenly, Matt found himself on the floor, his head throbbing. He was stunned and unable to move, when his attacker dropped the brick and forced his head underwater.

Matt panicked, he tried to struggle but his hands were gripped tightly and his head remained in the overflowing sink. The water continued to run, dribbling on to the floor and creating the mess.

Water flooded his lungs, and his vision was getting darker. Matt's struggles became weaker as he started to drown.

_Help me..._

* * *

**There are 13 chapters in all, including an epilogue.  
**

**I don't care whether you leave a review or now, but don't be shy to leave a comment if you want to. I'm not going to say that reviews motivates my writing, because I'd be lying. This story is already written on my computer, it's just waiting to be uploaded every Sunday.  
**


	3. The Opposite of Fire

**=ch3=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorale**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arise, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 3: The Opposite of Fire  
_

_I have almost forgot the taste of fears;  
_

_The time has been, my senses would have cool'd  
_

_To hear a night-shriek; and my fell of hair  
_

_Would be at a dismal treatise rouse and stir  
_

_As life were in't: I have supp'd full with horrors,  
_

_Direness, familiar to my slaughterous thoughts  
_

_Cannot once start me.  
_

* * *

"Matt?"

The was no answer.

"Just answer us already, Matt!"

Mello pounded the door, but the only thing he heard inside was the steady dribbling of water.

"This isn't funny, Matt!" Mello shouted as he tried to force the door open. It did not budge, and stood stubbornly in their way. Water leaked at the corner of the door, and Mello's feet splashed around.

"Oww..." He hissed, clutching his throbbing fist, "How can one old door be so _tough_?"

"Here, let me," L said. He took a few steps back, then did a strange movement - like a weird handstand, and kicked the door. Hard.

He slipped, of course, from all that water. But it was a very devastating kick. L had first learned caoperia when she had seen Naomi Misora fight, he had later asked her to show him a few tutorial videos. Despite being a beginner, L was still very good at the footwork, perhaps because he usually sat while crouching, his legs were naturally stronger to support him.

The door didn't stand a chance.

Immediately, the stench of blood greeted their noses. The kids gasped in horror as they discovered what's inside.

The bathroom was flooded. Puddles was everywhere and the tap was still running. Matt sprawled on the ground, unmoving. Blood stained his head, stiffening in his already red hair and dripped down to form pools of crimson.

On the walls, on the floor, the mess was everywhere. Everybody's pajamas were getting soaked, but they we too busy staring at the unmoving body of Matt. On the bathroom mirror, there was a sideways eight symbol drawn in blood, but only Beyond noticed that.

"MATT!" Mello shrieked, rushing to his friend's side. He checked his pulsed, relieved at the faint pulse. Beside him, Watari crouched down and attempted to find a way to get water out of Matt's lungs, but Mello swatted him away.

"Don't touch him!" Mello yelled, his eyes wild. His blond hair fell across his face messily, and made him looked deranged. He looked like an insane escappee from the aslyum.

Even L took a step back at that expression. He didn't know how attached Mello was to Matt, and the blond must be feeling that he failed in protectng Matt.

"Mello," Watari coaxed him, "We need to get the water out of his lungs, or Matt would die."

"I'll do it myself," Mello said snappishly.

"We need to find out what happened here," L said quietly, "We need to keep calm, and move Matt to the living room."

"Right, we'll look for clues next morning," said Near.

Mello stared at them, "How can you be like this?" he asked, "Matt was _attacked_, and you're talking about it like tomorrow's weather! Where are you when he was drowning? Where could have his attacker gone, and are we all safe tonight? That's what we _should_ be thinking!"

"Are you saying that the one responsible is one of us?" Light asked nervously.

"Exactly! What are the chances of a mass murderer conveniently lurking inside this building when it was abandoned for years? Nobody else except us knew about this field-trip, so who else could it be?" Mello exclaimed.

"Did anyone here hate Matt so much they're willing to try to kill him?" Beyond asked sarcastically, "I know you're worried, Mello, but use some_ logic _for once."

"Oh, it's you, isn't it?" Mello snarled, rounding on Beyond, "I always knew you're a psycho, you-"

"That's enough, Mello!" said Watari, "We can't go blaming everybody. We need to try to confirm each other our alibis."

"He's right," Near said, "Besides, Mello, B and I were playing dominos with you in the living room. There's no way we could have done it. L was there, too, reading a book."

"I told Watari to make some sandwiches," L stated, "He's in the kitchen."

"For an hour?" Mello asked harshly, "He could have sneaked out and then attacked Matt without anyone knowing!"

"Mello, why would Watari want to kill Matt?" L questioned.

"I dunno, maybe because he never really listened to him back in the orphanage?"

"That's a terrible excuse," Beyond said, rolling his eyes, "Okay, so Watari's without an alibi. Who else..."

Every single eyes focused on Light.

"I... I was in my room. Reading."

"You could have done it. None of us saw you tonight, and you could be lying."

Light shook his head frantically, "NO! I didn't do it! I won't hurt someone like this!"

"That's what you want us to think," Mello sneered, "But behind our backs, you're really planning our deaths!"

Light backed up against the wall, tears gathered in his eyes, "I didn't! You've got to believe me!" He cried.

Near nodded, "We're not pointing fingers at each other now, or we can't trust anybody enough for the case to be solved. I'll believe you, Light."

"Thank you, Near..." Light whispered.

"Humph!" Mello huffed, "There may not be evidence, but I've got my eyes on you!"

"That brings us back... We need a name to call this person attacking Matt," L said, "We can't call him 'that-person-who-attacked-Matt' for the rest of the case."

There were several weak chuckles at that.

"Kira."

Everybody turned to face Beyond, who smirked, "It's that killer that was always featured in Light's diaries, he gets to kill me," he explained

"You read my stories!" Light yelled. There was a flicker in his emotion was unrecognizable, but Beyond knew he was thinking about something.

"Well, yes. On the way here."

"Which ones did you read?" Light demanded. He sounded... Scared?

"All of them," Beyond lied. He only read two, one with his own death, and one of L's. His(Beyond's) death was, surprisingly, being stabbed. But now that he remembered-

"Do you know where is it?" The chestnut-haired boy asked desperately.

"No, why do you ask?"

"...Nothing," Light muttered, staring at the ground.

"Okay, so we'll be calling him/her 'Kira'," L announced, interrupting their train of thought.

Watari, who had been very quiet, spoke up, "Everybody, it's quite late now and we need to go to bed. We'll be moving Matt there too so that Kira wouldn't come in and... Finish what he intended."

Mello jumped to his feet, "If he comes near me or Matt, I'll kick his face in!"

Beyond sweatdropped, "What about us?"

Near sighed, dragging his polar bear plushie with him, "I'm going to bed," he yawned, "You can fight all you want on your own."

That shut them up.

The six of them trudged upstairs and to their rooms.

"I call the top bunk!" Mello yelled excitedly, "You can move Matt to the bottom."

"Sharing beds now, are you?" Beyond snickered, "How romantic. Bad Mello, taking advantage of poor Matt like that in his sleep."

"Shut up!"

L yawned, "If you're quite finished, I wo-" he was interrupted by two pillows to the head.

"Don't interrupt us!" Beyond and Mello said at the same time. The two of them working together is a terrifying thing, but L, being the most awesome detective in the world and had seen a lot of scary things, was not afraid.

With a twitching eye, he swung both pillows back along with his own, "You want to do it the hard way or the easy way?"

No verbal answers was given as feathers flew. The next few minutes could be heard thumps and smacks along with excited battle cries. The mood had been considerably lighter from earlier, as all other thoughts had fled their minds in the heat of the battle.

"Boys," said Watari, "We're trying to sleep now. And you're all going to clean up that mess tomorrow morning."

"Sorry," the three of them echoed.

The lights turned off and the room quieted, leaving each person to their own thoughts.

* * *

**I chose this chapter title because it is ironic. In canon, Death Note Another Note, Beyond nearly died by fire. Here, someone else (Matt) nearly dies by water.  
**


	4. The Diary

**=ch4=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arise, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 4: The Diary  
_

_I shall be telling this with a sigh  
_

_Somewhere ages and ages hence:  
_

_Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-  
_

_I took the one less traveled by,  
_

_And that has made all the difference.  
_

* * *

_It's got to be Light_, Mello thought viciously as he paced harder in his room. It was morning, and breakfast was ready. (Beyond still moaned about lack of jam). But he couldn't bring himself to eat.

How dare Light just pretend to be innocent and dare to stay with them? He was guilty, and Mello was sure of it. His observation skills had picked upon every nervous twitch, every word spoken to look for slip-ups. Light fit the profile perfectly, he was strong enough, and probably built up a grudge against them, maybe for them practically forcing him to work part-time at Wammy's house...

Light had been lying when he said he was reading in his room when Matt's attack happened. He could easily have slipped away and-

"Mello! Are you coming down or not?" he heard Watari call from downstairs.

"I'm not hungry!"

"We still got chocolate~!" he heard Beyond sang.

Chocolate. The heavenly sweetness that melts in his mouth. The bane of his existence (besides Matt). The only thing he loved more than leather. His resolve crumpled.

"Alright, I'm coming," he grumbled.

Morning breakfast was very awkward. Nobody sat near Light, who looked absolutely miserable. He was the main suspect of Kira, after all. Dark bags hung from his eyes, and Light evidently hadn't gotten much sleep that night. His hunched posture made him look like L, which Beyond was kind of irritated about. Damn it, he was the only one who gets to copy L!

Light was brooding in his chair. Nobody believed him, and the mood at the table was tense. He felt uncomfortable being in a room full of people who wasn't thinking of positive things about him now. How many times did he have to tell them that it was not him?

He was so sure the lie would work, but it seemed that Watari knew him enough to detect any lies. Still... he prefer that they don't know the real reason to why he lied. But that wouldn't be good. If the diary was read, then the suspicion of him being Kira would only go higher.

And Beyond apparently had read it, so why was he looking so relaxed in his chair? He should be the most accusing of them, and he may actually have evidence to back him up. But that was only if he had the diary, which was missing now. Light wondered where it was, as he had put it under his bed last night,

He sighed and continued to eat his oatmeal. They will catch Kira, soon.

Meanwhile, Watari was stirring more soup, "I don't think any one of you did it," he reassured the group, "I have raised you all, and despite all the hardship along the way, I think I would know if one of you is Kira."

"He is correct," said Near. His polar bear plushie was on the ground and he was munching on a slice of toast, "Light is not Kira. If he was, we would already be dead right now."

"While there's no evidence to support he was Kira, there's a 63% of it being him," L spoke up, "But the other 37% goes to..." He stopped when Beyond shot him a sharp look.

"Maybe." Beyond agreed easily, "Kira isn't any of us, and could be hiding inside the mansion right now. Light would be innocent."

"Didn't you forget the diary?" L asked, "That was a clue, a large one. And we still don't know what it meant."

"Give me some time to think," Beyond said with a shrug, "I know that the diary is the key to unlock this mystery."

"Funny how it is conveniently missing," Mello snorted.

"I told you! I'm not Kira!" Light protested.

"That's right," Watari agreed, "Before we've got evidence, Light is innocent until proven guilty."

"Feh, it should be guilty until proven innocent," Mello muttered.

"Mello..." Light warned.

L interrupted them, "Are we going to look for clues or not?" he snapped.

Mello huffed under his breath, Light nodded silently.

Meanwhile, Beyond sat on a stool, deep in thought. The diary is certainly the most important clue to solving this case, but where was it, and what's so important inside that made it so important?

He could not just ask Light, exposing the fact that he had, in fact,_ not_ read Light's diary. Lying would make him look like Kira.

"I caught Near and Mello wandering in the halls earlier on," Watari commented, "But I do not believe it was any of you."

"Hell no!" Mello protested, "Why would I want Matt dead?!"

"You could be a very good actor." Light muttered, "And the way you kept blaming me, you could be trying to frame me."

"You-" Mello lunged, but was held back by Beyond and L.

_No._ Beyond thought,_ his eyes reflected genuine anger. Mello is the kind of boy who wears his heart on his sleeve. He can't hide his emotions even if it kills him._

"I didn't do it," Near said quietly, "Mello and I were in each others sights at all times. If I had, he would have caught me."

"Fine." Mello huffed.

"Hey! Light yelled, "Why did he get off easy while I'm still suspected!"

"Because," Mello said, "You had the most evidence pointing to you."

"What evidence?"

"The diary, once we find it. The fact that you weren't with us when Matt's attempted murder happened. Or that you are acting suspicious."

"That's not it! I was only trying to-"

"Look," Beyond snapped, "Either you're going to _shut the hell up_, and get going to the bathroom to look for clues, _or,_ you can stay here and babble all day."

The duo instantly quieted.

"That's better," said Beyond, satisfied, "Now come with us or we're leaving without you."

* * *

**Take special notice of the quote for this chapter. No, it has nothing to do with the plot, but it will help you if you figure out the meaning.  
**


	5. One Step Ahead

**=ch5=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 5: One Step Ahead  
_

_"My mind," he said, "Rebels at stagnation. Give me problems, give me work, give me the most abstruse cryptogram or the most intricate analysis, and I am in my own proper atmosphere. I can dispense then with artificial stimulants. But I abhor the dull routine of existence. I crave for mental exaltation. That is why I have chosen my own particular profession, or rather created it, for I am the only one in the world."_

* * *

Near peered over the window.

He had to step on a chair to do it, because he was so short. Five-years old are just _tiny_, and it didn't help that Near was a runt. He was the size of a toddler, which irritated him because people would often squeal at how 'cute' he was and cuddle him without his permission. They would often accidentally knock over his card tower in the process.

It was raining heavily outside. Lightning flashed ever so often, and thunder rumbled ominously in the distance. There was nothing left of the blue sky, which was covered by pitch dark clouds that only let the slivers of light filter through. Everything outside was soaked to the core. Watari's car, the garden, the statues, and the forest. Anyone who went out there would have a hard time getting out.

There must be a secret passage to this place that would lead to another escape. Old houses are usually this way if they were built by wealthy people, for purpose of escaping from fire or assassination attempts.

"This doesn't bode well," he muttered to himself. To go outside is practically suicide right now, and it was almost impossible to see out the window.

He scrubbed the glass with his sleeve, clearing away some of the fog, and was annoyed when most of his vision was blocked by large droplets of rain.

The ground was muddy. Full of soggy soil and strands of the undergrowth. Pipes led from the ground, ivy climbed over the wall of the building, wrapping themselves thickly through the pillars that supported the house.

And faintly through the glass, an indent on the dirt could be seen. A single footprint.

"I found something," Near said. He didn't exclaim, or even stated it in a loud voice. But everybody heard it and instantly came over.

"A footprint," L whispered.

Beyond rolled his eyes, "Way to state the obvious, genius."

"But we can't go out and check the footprint," Light said, "It's too dangerous out."

L shrugged, "From this height, I can still determine some facts about that footprint. It was big, but not as much as an adult's. Maybe a teenager, or a person that was naturally short."

"There's only one footprint though," said Near, "Perhaps Kira want to fool us to think this way."

"Or maybe he's not," Mello grunted, "When Matt wakes up, he'll tell us everything."

"He may not have gotten a good look at Kira's face, though." Light pointed out, "He got a head injury, then almost drowned."

"Hey, L," said Light, "Are there any other Wammy children that are near my age?"

"Of course, it's an orphanage for children, which means it's for 18 years and below." L replied easily, "You think somebody followed us here and tried to frame you?"

Light nodded.

"The possibilities of that is 17%," said L, "For once, we left without telling anyone. Watari wanted us to have some 'bonding time' here after all. Second of all, the only successor I knew who held a grudge against me was B."

Beyond grinned, "Weeeeelll, I did have two other friends back home who might want you dead because of A. But we already got them in jail for that L.A case. The one with the voodoo dolls, remember?"

"Yes," L said, nodding seriously, "You and Naomi Misora performed well, and caught them before the fourth victim died."

Beyond winced, "That was a close call."

"I remember hearing it on the news," said Light, "So they're in jail, and we hadn't heard anything about a breakout. So back to the topic of Matt almost drowning."

"Daneuve, the world's third greatest detective, was D. But she's a grown woman, and I heard she had an... accident after the detective war. Now, L has her title," said Watari.

"Right," said L, "He was sprawled on the floor and bleeding from a head wound, most likely done to stun him to force his head underwater."

"...Drowned," Beyond said thoughtfully. Suddenly, something came up in his mind, "Drowned in the bathroom, in the sink, in front of the..."

"The mirror!" he exclaimed, "That's right, I saw something on the mirror earlier."

"Mirror?" L looked interested, "Should have known you to spend your attention on that, B."

Beyond stuck out his tongue, "You know, L, the Wammy children idolize you. They tried everything they could to be _just_ like you. Like spending hours on the mirror each day, which was probably why I focused on that. Reflexes."

Mello snorted, "Explains why Near always got that creepy L-look in his eyes, and why you look like his red-eyed-twin."

"I'm the first on the ranking list, he's the second, which shows that it works," Beyond shot him a cocky grin.

They approached the bathroom, still untouched. Nobody had wanted to clean that up, or to spend more time in there. Mello, of course had wanted to stay to try to catch Kira, and L wanted it untouched to preserve the evidence.

Nobody would have noticed the symbol if it was not for Beyond's sharp eyes. He was meant to be the one to discover it.

Whoever Kira is, they knew them well.

"There it is," Beyond said, gesturing to he dried blood that showed the tiny sideways 8 at the bottom of the mirror.

L surveyed it, his eyes narrowing in thought. It was obviously a symbol - infinity. But what does it mean? Infinite what, and why did Kira leave a clue in the first place? It wasn't like this person is very eager to get caught.

Or perhaps this is just a game to Kira. Make a puzzle, challenge the world-famous detective, and lead them on a chase to their deaths. Kira was very intelligent, then, and perhaps could even...

"What is that?" Light asked, pointing to the floor. Everybody turned, and imprinted there was a bloody corner of a footprint. It was cleanly made, so it was certain that it was made by a shoe and not by a drop of blood.

"Light, did you have a bloody smear on your shoe?" Mello asked suspiciously.

"Everybody have blood on their shoes when we came in and stepped on the blood," said Watari, "Now it's impossible to tell."

"Judging by the size of the corner, it was not made by Kira," said L, peering at it closely, "It was different from the one we saw from the window, and this is made by either a woman or a child."

"Unless there's two Kiras," Mello scowled, "Near must be helping Light then! You have supported him from the start!"

"Because I know that Light is innocent," Near replied coolly, "Kira is framing me now, because I didn't believe the Light-is-Kira theory."

L sighed, "Bickering around is not going to earn us points, so let's just continue on the search for clues."

Both Mello and Light opened their mouths to speak, but a glare silenced them.

"Silently, I said."

The next hour was spent painstakingly combing every drop, every inch of the bathroom. They checked the taps, Mello tried to stuff Light down a toilet, and Beyond brought some jam to pass the time as he watched them.

"What are you doing, B?" Light asked, still dripping wet, "Aren't you searching for clues?"

"No," Beyond replied, "I believe we've already found everything."

"Oh? Why do you think that?"

"Because Kira is leaving us messages, clues to follow. If we hadn't found any more after an hour, then there isn't any."

"Wow," Light said, sitting with him, "You are very smart."

Beyond snorted, "Flattery gets you nowhere. But jam will get you everywhere."

"Heh, I'll remember that. And, B, about Kira..."

"Do you think I suspect you and Near?" Beyond asked.

There was a nod.

"Well, you're still innocent until proven guilty, so I'll hold off my judgement for now. But I'm not saying that I think you're innocent either."

The suffocating silence hung between the two.

"Light."

"What?"

"The diary is the key, the key to this mystery. Just what was written in it?"

"You mean you haven't read it?"

"...Only the one about myself."

A sigh of relief.

"Oh, um, I have anger management class, you see. There was very much stress on me because I am the 'perfect son' of the house, and any lower grades are not tolerated. I often lash out at people, if they made me frustrated enough. So one morning in school, I saw something fall out from the sky, blown here by a breeze. It was a sign-up form to an anger-management class."

"And it just didn't get blown away by the wind before you could retrieve it?"

"No, it was snagged on a rock."

"Ah."

"So I met up with my girlfriend, Misa, and we went there together. The teachers were a bit scary-looking, but Rem was Misa's adoptive mother, and I was dating her daughter, so I guess she had the right to be mean. Ryuk just laughs at every little thing. But we got diaries so we could write things in, what angers us, and tell someone about it. It's very effective."

"So you just... write people's deaths in it?" Beyond asked, amused.

Light blushed in embarrassment, "Oh, um, yeah, you saw that. I do wish sometimes that I could kill someone, but in reality, I can't."

"In reality."

"In fiction, I could do anything I want. I could be god, and I could be another person."

Beyond laughed, "What did you write in there? About Matt's death?"

Light just stared blandly ahead, "...There isn't one."

* * *

**Yup! Matt did not die! Not in Light's diary or in the bathroom. Coincidence, no?**


	6. Making Jam

**=ch6=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 6: Making Jam  
_

_Time is a great teacher, but unfortunately it kills all its pupils_

* * *

In the distance, a continuous rumbling of thunder could be heard. The storm had not creased. Instead, it came down harder than ever. The dirt became mush and the wind tore holes in the leaves. Lightning shook the house, flashing ever so often and scaring the occupants within.

The children was quiet, even when Watari brought them some hot chocolate. Mello, of course, devoured them greedily. But L and Beyond are in deep thought, while Light just stared off into the fireplace.

"When will we go back home?" Near asked.

"When the storm stops," Watari replied, "Then we will bring Matt to a hospital."

"Do you think I'm second Kira?" Near spoke quietly, "I am 74% sure that there was somebody else helping Kira, 36% of Second Kira being me, and 50% of Kira being Light."

"Fifty percent, huh," Light snorted softly, "Right in the middle."

"Near, that's 160%," L said flatly.

"48% of someone helping Kira, 25% in Kira being me, and 27% that Light is Kira," Near quickly corrected.

"More than one-fourth," Beyond commented, "But still no solid evidence."

"Well, if you play with your percentages, then I'm 100% sure that it's Light!" Mello said, annoyed.

L gave him a look, "Mello, we don't throw percentages around based upon opinion."

"Well, face it; all evidence points to him?"

"What evidence?" It was Beyond, sitting on the sofa. The shadow of the fire flickered calmly in his ruby eyes, "So far, there wasn't a thing pointing Light to being Kira. If you got evidence, then please, name them."

"What about the fact that we found footprint outside that matches a teenagers?" Mello shot back.

"L, Light, and I are all teenagers. You could also fit that class with your big feet."

"Hey!"

"So there aren't any evidence indicating Light being Kira, other than his shaky alibi and Mello's accusations," L concluded, "When Matt awakes, I'm sure he'll tell us."

Light looked downwards, "No, he wouldn't."

"Why?"

"Matt was hit on the back of his head, which meant that Kira snuck up on him. Then Matt would never have seen who attacked him."

"Damn it," Mello growled, "What are we going to do now?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Beyond shot him a look.

"Huh?"

"We look for jam, of course!" Beyond exclaimed, "We brought fruits, right? Normally I wouldn't have eaten any jam other than strawberry, but desperate time calls for desperate measures."

Everyone gave him a deadpan look, "Huh?!"

Watari sighed, "B. We have blueberries, raspberries, apples, and bananas. Not enough for a jar of jam, and it would not taste nice if we mix them all together."

"Jam is jam," B said stubbornly, "And I have gone two days without them. I want jam. Now!"

"And you called me childish," L said lightly.

"Oh, and we'll be running out of cake soon," Beyond smirked.

"WHAT!"

Light shook his head. Why oh why did all Wammy kids have an addiction? Beyond loved jam, L loved cake (and other sweets), Matt loved electronics, and Mello loved chocolate. It seemed that the only normal person was Watari himself.

"Well, I want a break from this case," L sighed, "It will be solved sooner or later, when the storm stops and I get more police to the scene. It won't do much good to stress out now. Besides, Matt is not dead."

"Yeah, about that..." Beyond frowned, "In Light's di-"

"What did I say about putting this case on hold?"

"Hey, I can't help thinking about this, you know."

"Even more than jam?"

"...Alright, I'll tell you later," Beyond sighed.

They headed to the kitchen, and Watari brought out the fruits. He assigned everyone a spoon and told them to peel off the banana peels and mash all the ingredients together.

And judging by Mello's vicious bashing of a banana, it seemed that he, like Beyond, couldn't just put the case out of his mind. Near was making a banana tower, and actually finished it before he was told to mash it, not carve it.

Light seemed more relaxed, however. No longer pressured by the constant stares and fear, his face had regained a bit of color. His eyes was clear again, and he smiled just a bit.

Beyond tasted a bit of a blueberry, "This is sour! Why is jam not sweet?"

"To make something sweet, you need to put sugar in it," L told him slowly, stressing out each word as if speaking to a small child.

"Alright, alright... Where did the sugar go?"

"I ate it."

"Why?! You still have candy in your bag!"

"The leftover chocolate was eaten by Mello."

Their attention turned to Near, who was rifling through a bag, "Here," he said, "I have a jar of honey. It's not sugar, but it'll make the jam sweeter."

"Uh, thanks." They did not want to know _why_ Near had got a jar of honey, mostly because they wanted to avoid asking the child why he still carried that bear around. Even though Near was technically a child, it was still weird for someone of his intelligence to carry a stuffed animal around.

So they poured the entire jar down the bowl, and combined it together with the mushy fruit mixture.

Beyond scooped some of it up, and tasted it with his fingers.

"Mmm, it's nice, but something's lacking," he said.

"What now!" Mello asked, exasperated.

"Jam need that jam-y taste, not just some lumps with fruit juice around it," L spoke up wisely.

"We need to blend these. And get the secret ingredient."

"Hey, Watari! Do we have a blender here?"

"Yes."

"Alright! So now for it the secret ingredient!" Beyond whipped out an empty jam jar.

"Why do you have a jar?" Light asked with wide eyes.

Beyond smirked, "One never knows when we need them," he said, "Now... Aha! We're missing some jello!"

"What did you just call me?" Mello asked with a twitching eye.

"Oh, I'm not talking to you, Mello-jello," Beyond waved his hand in a mock-dismissive gesture, "Jam usually are blobs you spread on your toast, right? So we need to combine it with some jello for it to be like that!"

Near frowned, "It could turn out horrible, you know," he pointed out.

"Jam is jam, and my theory is never wrong!" Beyond declared, "Now we will not be wasting a single drop of the precious jam, so all of you are invited to eat it!"

"What, we actually need your permission to eat _jam_?" Light muttered.

"Exactly!"

So the rest of the day was spent in carefree relaxation. The children had almost forgotten that Kira was lurking somewhere in the house, and were now laughing and enjoying their time, acting like kids should be at that age for once.

It was only until night, that they remembered their predicament, as lightning flashed and the lights flickered. The electricity buzzed for another minute, then died down, enveloping the house into total darkness.

There were frightened gasps at this, but Watari lit up the fireplace, and put a candle on the table.

"There," He rasped. "I don't know when the storm will crease for the repair-men to come. But we will stay by the flame. If you need to go to the washroom, just take the candle with you."

Mello looked at Matt, who they had moved to the living room, "Yeah."

"We'll be sleeping here tonight, so if you had anything forgotten in your bedroom, now is the best time to get it."

Nobody went. But the words 'forgotten' and 'bedroom' kept echoing inside Beyond's mind.

What was forgotten? And why did it sound so important? Is it with the Kira case, or the notebook, the case seemed to go on for eternity

Beyond froze, his fingers hovering above the jar of jam he was about to dive into. His mind whirled at all the possibilities, the, case, Kira, and like one of those connect-the-dots activities you had to do in pre-school, it all clicked together in place. Like a perfect puzzle.

"I got it," he breathed, his ruby eyes wide and wild with excitement. He began to laugh slowly, softly, "Kyahahaha... I have solved this case, Kira."

Adrenaline rush through him as he dashed off without a word, only picking up the candle along the way (only flinching slightly at the heat of the flames). He needed to go to the bedroom, now, to confirm this. He was sure he knew who attacked Matt. It was all _his_ style, and if he was correct...

...Then Beyond himself would be the next target.

Flinging open the door, Beyond peered into the dark room carefully.

"Where are you, Kira~!" Ah, screw it, he will finally surpass L by catching Kira first. What's a little risk? "Come out, Kira, or should I call you-"

He never finished the sentence.

(After Beyond left, in the living room...)

"Where was he going?" Asked L.

"He probably forgot something in the bedroom," said Watari.

"No," Light frowned, "Beyond didn't bring anything to this mansion. So he probably found a lead to the case,"

"We should go check," L suggested.

Light nodded, "I'll be back shortly," and he left down the dark corridor.

L watched him leave, feeling a dark tingle run down his spine, "Why am I having a bad feeling about this..."

Mello snuggled (he'll deny this late on) closer to the sleeping Matt, "Sheesh, could you keep it down a bit?" he grumbled, "I am trying to sleep here."

No sooner did he say this, the silence was punctured by a ear-splitting scream from upstairs.

Light.

* * *

**I did not read any recipe book for how to make jam, so please don't try it at home and get food poisoning.  
**

**I apologize for B-fans, please be patient and wait for the end of the story.  
**


	7. Silent to the Grave

**=ch7=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 7: Silent to the Grave  
_

_I have become a corpse, I cannot answer, I am dead._

* * *

Light was pressed up against the wall when they found him. His eyes was wide and terrified as he shook, his trembling fingers pointed toward the closed door of their bedroom. Upon hearing his scream, footsteps thundered upstairs as everybody rushed up to see what was going on.

Watari gently took the catatonic boy into his arms, "L, open the door."

The dark haired detective obliged, and it swung open with barely a creak. The room was dim, but there was the smell of blood, suffocating and sickening.

"No, B, no..." L had turned on the lights, and everybody gasped at the large pool of crimson that greeted them.

Beyond laid on the carpet, still and unmoving. He was face-down, a knife sticking out from his back, piercing his heart.

"He... He's dead." Mello muttered in disbelief. There was no rise and fall of Beyond's breathing, no twitch in the fingers to indicate he was alive, "C-check for a pulse."

Nobody did, nobody dared.

L's eyes was wide and his gaze was blank as he saw Beyond's corpse. He did not take his eyes off from the body. His breath came in short gasps, and he bit his lip, drawing blood.

"This is a joke, right?" he whispered "Get up, B. Stop playing around, it's not funny. You're not dead, y-you are n-not..."

Watari shook his head sadly and gripped L's shoulder. Despite seeing many corpses in his line of work, L had remained naive in the concept of death. He understood it, accepted that it would happen to everyone some day, but he was still a child, and this was the first time he had someone die that he actually knew and was friends with.

"Come along now, L," he said soothingly, "There's... Nothing we could do now. We are putting his body in the basement to preserve it until-"

"SHUT UP!" L suddenly screamed. He curled into a ball on the floor, rocking himself back and forth, muttering heatedly, "B is not dead, he's only sleeping, shut up... Shut up... He doesn't need to be buried after he wakes up, come on B..."

Light, still looking frightened, cautiously approached L. "L, I understand, but it's -it's impossible for him to survive a knife impaling his heart. He's dead, L."

_He's dead._

_B is dead.  
_

L sagged down even further. "No! I don't believe it, I won't believe it. He is alive."

He felt tired, now. Kira had killed B, Kira had actually killed someone, B is dead.

The world spun, and L vomited, before he sank down into welcoming oblivion.

L dropped into a dead faint and Watari rushed to pick him up.

"I want us all to return to the living room." Watari said sharply, "Tomorrow we will investigate further when we have natural sunlight.

"Yeah," Mello muttered, "I still can't believe this, why did Kira kill B and left Matt alive? This didn't make any sense."

The living room was silent, with only the occasional shuffle from their sleeping bags. The flames from the fireplace flickered gently, and gave a mild warmth. For a moment, they could close their eyes and pretend this never happened. They would be safe in their home, B would be alive, Matt would be up and running...

A pair of black eyes blinked open, and L finally awoke. He did not react, but simply stared blankly at the ceiling, where the shadows would move constantly, like dancing patters.

_"Awww, Lawli, so upset over me?"_ He could imagine B - if he was still alive, mocking him this way. Just hours earlier, the boy had been alive, moving, breathing, living. And this was so sudden, so hard to take in.

L shut his eyes and turned over, away from the fire. B was special, he was interesting, sarcastic, witty, and the only one who could face L and saw him as a regular person, instead of the most successful detective in the world.

But before they became 'friends' of some sort, B had been best friends - more like a guardian, over a little girl named A.

She was perhaps five or so when they brought her to the Wammy house. B had taken it upon himself to protect her, from bullies to the scary monsters under the bed.

But he failed, they all failed.

The pressure was too much, A had taken the only way out - suicide. She was six then, still too young.

L could still remember that rainy day, at the funeral in the gardens...

* * *

_The wind howled mournfully, like a wild beast. The rain poured steadily down, soaking everybody to the bone as they stood stock still, before the silent grave of A._

_L did not know much about A, only that she was incredibly bright for such a young child, and will soon be surpassing him if she was still alive. It was such a waste of potential, and he promised himself to personally rearrange the system of the Wammy house.  
_

_Watari put a boquet of flowers beside the grave, and buried all of A's belongings with the body. The black coffin slammed shut unforgivably, and would never open again.  
_

_The detective decided that it was a good idea to come here personally, so that he had put on a cloak, and sat there, and waited for the crowd to disperse. He was patient, and it was not like he could catch a cold easily.  
_

_But his musings were interrupted suddenly as his onyx eyes met furious red ones. In front of him, was an exact copy of himself. The L-lookalike wore the same white clothes, faded jeans, but had scruffy running shoes on. He was drenched from the rain, but didn't seem to care as he continued to glare at L.  
_

_"YOU!" he roared at L, "Why didn't you come here earlier! You could have saved her, you bastard!"  
_

_L did not react, but inside he got even more intrigued at his strange copy. It was like looking in a mirror, he decided, all the same, but exactly the opposite, "...How do you know who I am?" he asked simply.  
_

_The boy shook his messy back hair, "Don't mess with me, L Lawliet," he hissed, "I see your name right there. So you've been here the entire time! You could have noticed her pain, she wouldn't have DIED if you just paid attention to all of us!"  
_

_"My apologies, A's death is not intentional, and I take full responsibilities for it." L said quietly.  
_

_"Don't act like you understand what it means to lose a friend!" the boy shouted, "A is dead, and I am so sick of this place!"  
_

_"..." L was fine with being silent. He would let this boy vent out all his frustrations, and calm enough to keep him interested. Because right now, he was being predictable, and that was boring.  
_

_"My name is B," the boy said suddenly, "Burn it into your memory, L, because I will surpass you one day."  
_

* * *

And a few weeks after the funeral, B had done as he implied, he escaped from the Wammy orphanage and disappeared off the map. L could not find him, and that had frustrated him a great down. In their soul, L and B weren't much different. Their cat-and-mouse game continued, the two of them clashed again and again but neither side winning.

In the end, the victor was decided by a single case.

* * *

_"Rue Ryuuzaki, looks a lot like me, doesn't he?" L muttered as he stared at the file. Naomi Misora had met this person yesterday, and found him rather suspicious, so she reported to L about him. And it was a good thing she did, too, because L might not have found B otherwise._

_"Rue. L. Very clever use of Japanese pronunciation," he said, "Watari. Tell Misora to bring Rue here."  
_

_The elderly man nodded, and left L to his own devices.  
_

_The first thing L did was to remove all camera and surveillance cameras from the room. He would keep this meeting confidential, even if it means notifying the FBI and other organizations out there that he knew about their bugs in his room all along.  
_

_Not that he ever let them see anything interesting, or his face either.  
_

_A moment later, the door swung open and L's breath caught in his throat. It really was B, down to his red eyes and uncanny resemblance to L. B looked older, and a bit more tired. His hair grew longer and it hung down instead of sticking all over the place like L's. He was clutching a jar of jam, and looked uneasy.  
_

_"Quillish Wammy, also known as Watari. Does that mean L is here, too?"  
_

_"I am right here, B," L said quietly. The boy's head whipped around, red orbs glowing in the dark along with the light radiating from the computer screens.  
_

_"You," B snarled, "I have no desire to see you."  
_

_"Funny," said L, "Because I have searched for you for the past few months. You've given me the hardest case yet, B."  
_

_B laughed, "Hah! That was what I intended, Lawli!"  
_

_L's eyes darted about in paranoia even though he knew he had removed all cameras and speakers from the room, "Don't call me that."  
_

_"I will call you whatever I want," B snapped, "But soon enough, I will surpass you, I will create the ultimate case that you'll never solve. I will beat you, L, and accomplish what A had never managed."  
_

_L felt his blood chill, "What do you mean?" he asked carefully.  
_

_"Kyahaha!" B snickered, "you think I would tell you, Lawli? You really think I'm that dumb? You should continue that train of thought, and you would never know."  
_

_"You couldn't... B, are you going to kill someone?"  
_

_"Not just 'someone', multiple 'someones'." B replied.  
_

_"Why are you killing innocent people for? You wanted revenge on me!' L demanded.  
_

_"They are all destined to die anyways," B shrugged, "We all will one day. In an accident, by somebody's hand, an illness, humans are so fragile," _

_B started pacing.  
_

_"Tell you what, I will take you to someone who will die today. Try saving them, and then you'll see."  
_

* * *

And so they had, that day. L had phoned Watari to take them to a busy street. L hadn't believed that B could see the date of death of people, but he could accept it since that was the only exploitation of how B knew his real name.

They found a girl walking home from school, Quarter Queen was her name.

_"I had planned to kill her,"_ B had said, _"But... For now, I'll call it off. This should be an interesting experience, no?"_

So L tailed the girl, and watched her cross the street. Then suddenly, there was a screech of tires and the girl was too shocked to move. L quickly grabbed Quarter and pulled her to safety. But right after that, a glass vase fell off a balcony and landed on the girl's head

Again, L tried to save her by calling the hospital, but she lost too much blood, so L called a blood bank. And when Quarter rested on the hospital bed, she had gotten food poisoning. She was given medicine and was watched closely for the rest of the day. One after the next, death always seemed to found her. It took everything L got to keep her alive, with B snickering unhelpfully at his side. But, at the stroke of midnight, she had a heart attack and died anyways.

B had then smiled and told L, _"I had tried this, many times, with a lot of people. But in the end, they die anyways. Just like A."_

"That is a very stupid reason to kill people." L mumbled.

"You talking to yourself, L?" Mello asked from the sleeping bag on the couch. He still looked pale, but was better than before as he clutched a cup of hot chocolate.

"No," L sighed, "I was reminiscing. About B."

"May he rest in piece." Mello joked.

"That is not funny."

"I know. I was just trying to lighten the mood."

L rolled over, facing the fireplace this time.

He closed his eyes, willing his mind to go back to the memories about B's past.

* * *

_"So, if I help you with your cases, you'll let me off the hook? For real?" B asked incredulously. L nodded._

_"Just sign here, and you're pardoned. Besides, the reason why this is easy is because you didn't actually kill anyone. So be glad I got Misora to bring you here before you did."_

_"Yeah yeah," B yawned, "So what are going to work on?"_

_"It's a huge mafia, in Russia. So we'll be packing and arriving at the airport tomorrow."_

_"Ah, the benefits of being so frickin' rich. You have more money than any other orphan can dream up, Lawli..."_

_"I told you, stop calling me that already! And besides, most of the rooms are bugged, so watch what you say."_

_"Humph, noticed that already on my way here. So, I'll ask again, I'm working for you?"_

_"Working with me. But only if you are on your best behavior."_

_B signed the form._

* * *

L and B had many adventures in a single year, from recruiting for the Wammy house (they got Mello from that case in Russia), running from reporters, and cracking impossible cases.

Together, they were an unstoppable force. (Though of course, separately, they were ALSO an unstoppable force).

Perhaps the hardest case they ever been through was the Detective War. It was not a case, per see, but multiple cases. Three of the most brilliant detectives in the world, engaged in a competition to come out on the top, and fell two of his enemies in one swoop.

Through many problems that came along the way, hardships, failures, they still made it through. Eraldo Coil and Daneuve were defeated with the combined effort of L and B.

The Wara Ningyou case was tough too. Two children from the Wammy house, formerly B's friends, which meant they also knew A.

A, it seemed funny how she could still cause so much trouble when she was dead. L hadn't known about Infinity and X, because he had concentrated his attention on B during the funeral. B may have been saved from that destructive path, but those two were not.

And it took B nearly dying for L to realize that.

* * *

_L had assigned Naomi Misora to the Wara Ningyou case. This occurrence was highly unusual, as L only took cases that had more than ten victims, or worth a million dollars._

_But this was personal, because it was done by someone - multiple someones - from the Wammy house. The orphanage for gifted children.  
_

_And by gifted, it meant that every single child within were geniuses. They could think like an adult, their intellect well over 140, and were the best candidates to become L. Because of this, any ordinary detective would have lost badly against those kinds of opponents.  
_

_When Naomi first met B, he had crawled out from under the victim's bed, and without any shame, too. She had thought immediately about arresting him, but he had proven a valuable asset to the case. Plus, she had suspected him in being L.  
_

_They worked together, and Naomi tried not to mind Beyond's... odd quirks. He was no doubt the strangest man she had ever met, and creepy as hell.  
_

_Raye had called her a few times during the case, and that annoyed Naomi. Just because of that one blunder she made during that case, doesn't mean she was made of glass. She was frustrated that he boyfriend wouldn't understand her, despite being in the FBI himself.  
_

_Now, they were at the hotel, where the fourth murder would occur. Misora had been stationed at room 1313, and B at 404.  
_

_They called occasionally to report, but the killer had not made a move yet. Naomi sat on the bed, pondering. She didn't notice that she had curled up and assumed L/B's thinking position. It was true that she had deducted something the last time she sat like this, and besides, nobody was watching, and she need all the deduction he can get.s __  
_

_There was a reason the killer(s) targeted people with the name started with 'B'. The previous victims were Believe Bridesmaid, Blackberry Brown, and Backyard Bottomslash.  
_

_Their initials were all BB, and now her and Rue had traced the clues to this hotel, who had Blues-harp Babysplit residing in room 1313. 13 is B, 1313 means 'BB'. It couldn't get more obvious.  
_

_But the more Naomi thought about it, the less it made sense. The murderers would have anticipated someone to solve the clues, so it couldn't be that easy, considering how the puzzles drastically increase in difficulties with each victim. There had to be something more.  
_

_They had evacuated everyone in the hotel earlier, so when the murderers appears, they wouldn't have any hostages. Rue had insisted to lie in wait for the killer in room 404 because that was the one where the clue from the last victim pointed to.  
_

_Misora's thoughts wandered as she thought more about Rue. She knew that the name was fake, and that the man was most likely L. But she couldn't be sure. He was more intelligent than he showed, that was for sure. He had a small frame, like a child's. He looked like he was ten to twelve years old, while Naomi was fifteen.  
_

_Since when did she started thinking about him? Why did she feel that way for a complete WEIRDO! Naomi shook her head. And what about Raye?  
_

_Her eyes twitched as she thought about Rue again, of how his eyes looked very exotic, and his hair looked like silk...  
_

_Gah! Naomi hit her head on the desk, and banged it repeatedly. She did not want to be attracted to someone so - so- REPULSIVE as him!  
_

_'You are in denial, my dear Misora,' she could imagine Rue smirking at her and saying that. And speaking of Rue, he had not called yet, and it was already past the time.  
_

_Naomi gave a yell of frustration and jumped to her feet, seized her gun and handcuff on her desk as she hurried out of her room. Everything went by as a blur as her mind focused on on thing - Rue.  
_

_The elevator 'dinged' behind her, but it was not the best option for this. It was too slow. No, no, she had to hurry. QUICKLY!  
_

_The door to the emergency stairs swung open as she thundered down the steps. Her boots made loud clacking as she hurtled down three or four steps at a time. Her mind spun at the layout of the floor, which she memorized yesterday. She was on the thirteenth floor, and needed to get down to the fourth floor.  
_

_Nine floors, with time she hadn't got. Damn it all.  
_

_Cursing under her breath, Naomi went so quickly she almost missed her desalination. She halted, turned back, and flung open the door. Not pausing for another check around the room, she hurried towards room 404._

_Misora ran even faster as the smell of smoke reached her nose. It came from the right, right inside Rue's room! The killer was there!  
_

_She tugged at the doorknob, but it wouldn't open. Had Rue died? Was he still in there? There was a fire in his room! Was it done by the killer? "RYUUZAKI!" she yelled, but heard no answer but the cackling of fire.  
_

_She suddenly remembered that she had took her gun with her, and pulled it out. Naomi only hesitated a moment - but recovered quickly as she reminded herself that Rue's life was in danger. She shot at the handle, shattering it. The door swung open easily.  
_

_What made her heart sink was the sight of a single Wara Ningyo nailed to the wall, but then her attention was turned towards Rue, who was on fire. The boy was unconscious with a bruise on his head, as his clothes quietly burnt away along with his flesh.  
_

_Naomi quickly covered Rue over with a fire blanket, but his clothes were doused in gasoline. Naomi took them off and practically drowned them in the sink.  
_

_"Rue!" she called out, "Are you okay? Wake up!" but he didn't move._

_Naomi quickly phoned L, and was surprised when somebody answered. It seemed that Rue was not L after all.  
_

_"Hello, Misora."  
_

_"Don't 'hello' me, L! We have a situation here!"  
_

_L instantly sounded alert, "What is it?" he demanded."  
_

_"Rue was attacked. By the killer. He was doused in gasoline, then lit on fire."  
_

_"Is he alright?" Wow, L actually sounded concerned. Was he really?  
_

_"He's unconscious at the moment," Naomi replied, "Now, L, I want some answers."  
_

_There was a sigh at the other side of the phone, "Alright, I suppose I owe you one, Misora. I have put both you and Rue n danger because I couldn't find the killers fast enough. But Watari had caught them as they left the hotel, and they are now residing in jail."  
_

_"I want to know why Rue was involved in this. You chose him to aid me on this case and while he was very... helpful, he almost died."  
_

_"I apologize for Rue's situation," said L, "Though I should say that his real name was Beyond Birthday. Another BB, which was why he was the fourth victim. The killers were someone we both knew, and had grudges against us, so B felt that this case was personal."  
_

_"And why did you want me to investigate along with him?" asked Naomi, "He was managing well alone."  
_

_This time, L let out a private laugh, "I had read upon your profile, and you seemed to be the only person capable of handling B, and I am impressed, really, at how you dealt with him. You worked so well together, too."  
_

_"So the main point of me being here was to find Rue a girlfriend," Naomi deadpanned.  
_

_"Yes."  
_

_Ah, so blunt. Just like Rue.  
_

_A weak groan interrupted her conversation. Naomi almost dropped her phone as she rushed over to Rue. The boy's eyes fluttered open as he stared up at Naomi, then to himself.  
_

_"...Why am I naked?" was the first question he asked. Naomi had to refrain from falling to the ground in laughter.__  
_

* * *

B was ushered into a private hospital where he stayed for a week. Surprisingly, no burns could be found on him and his bruise had already faded. That was very strange, considering that he was engulfed in flames.

A lot happened after that. Raye and Naomi broke up, and Naomi quit the FBI (which was why they broke up in the first place), L had tried to hook B and Naomi up again, and so they had given a try. The two were currently dating.

B had, unsurprisingly, developed a phobia of fire. He would shudder every time someone lit a match, and he would absolutely refuse to cook, preferring microwaves instead. Orange had became his least favorite color, despite how close it was to red.

Mello had made the Wammy house rowdier, and quickly assumed second place, right after B. He was very intelligent, of course, but thoughts of him being the next L had made everyone shudder in fear.

Another year later, they had recruited Matt, too. It was on a field-trip to the arcade where the two met. They became fast friends and had never left each others side since then, and L found the Matt was a technology genius, and so allowed him into the orphanage, even though Matt had parents.

But that wasn't a problem because Matt had abusive parents, and so he was glad to be away from them, never to be heard from again. Mello wanted to find them and beat them up, which is why Matt never dared to give out his home address to anybody.

And then there was Light.

* * *

_"Let me go you maniac!" Light yelped as he tugged on B, who refused to let go of his waist. "Help! Anyone! This is sexual harassment!"_

_L came to view, "B, drop him."  
_

_Light screamed when he saw L, " Oh god, there's TWO of them!"  
_

_L looked unamused, "On the second though; B, you can keep at it."  
_

_B grinned, and whispered to the terrified Light, "I am not as nice as Lawli, ya see, and I really don't like you coming along with your high-and-mighty attitude. So guess what? You seem kinda smart, so we'll throw you to the House for a month, and see how you'll fare?" with that, he pushed Light into Watari's black car, and the four drove off.  
_

_L looked at him, "What are you up to, B?" he wondered.  
_

_B grimaced, his previous smile sliding off his face like a well-rehearsed mask, "That kid is the exact kind of person I don't like. Given time, he would have turned out into a criminal. Even with the best intentions, killing is wrong, and I have experienced that first hand."  
_

_L only nodded, "So sending him to the Wammy house would do him good, then. After all, we did fix you."  
_

_B snorted, "That place is going to change him so drastically, we wouldn't be able to recognize him after the month is done."  
_

_But before they even entered the airport, Light had ran away. L was very disappointed, but B had smirked and told him that he added a tracking device into Light's shoes, so he had already pinpointed the location of the Yagami household. Light would not notice it when he was running, because his mind would not be clear enough to analyze the situation and detect any bugs. But when he gets home, it would be too late for him.  
_

* * *

A few days later, Yagami Soichiro had angrily called L for kidnapping his son. It seemed that B had left an 'L' symbol on the tracking device as a joke.

But the backup-detective could not be deterred from his so-called 'mission' to persuade Light to join them, so he began to stalked Light.

There were phone calls, letters, even a jar of (raspberry because B could not afford to waste his own jam on someone who would probably just throw it away) jam on the doorsteps. B also sneaked into Light's house each night and vandalized the walls.

L continued to tell Soichiro that it was not him who did this, but finally Light requested a meeting with B._  
_

So B had told him a rough version of what goes on in the orphanage, and how Light could work there part-time for some extracurricular learning. The two bargained for a while until Light finally agreed with a heavy sigh.

And a month later, in another case, they had met Near...

* * *

_"What case is it this time, Lawli?" Beyond yawned._

_"It's about a serial killer in France," L replied, "They've already got a detective working on the scene, but still couldn't figure it out."  
_

_"That sounded easy," Beyond smirked, "And I always wanted to try some jam in if Naomi would like something..."  
_

_And they packed, arrived at the airport, went on the plane, and was dropped off at Paris.  
_

_"The crime scene is three streets away from here." L noted, pointing at the map.  
_

_"Let's go then, I'll be the 'L' this time and you'll hide in case of emergency backup."  
_

_L smiled, "How ironic, I am going to be my own backup, and my backup is going to be me."  
_

_"At least you'll know how I usually feel, Lawli." B retorted.  
_

_B strolled casually to the scene. It was nothing new, just blood all over the floor, a corpse, the victim's families crying, all that stuff he witnessed in almost every case. Boring, and it was not as if they ran out of jam or something.. Now THAT would be bad...  
_

_But there was one person that caught his eyes, he froze.  
_

_It was a five-year old child, he got white hair, black eyes, and a bored expression in his face as he watched the investigation. The two of their eyes met, and B knew that this one is special.  
_

_Nate River.  
_

_But the image of Nate was replaced by a memory, the image of the boy shifted. His hair went white to black, and for a moment, B was reminded of A.  
_

_Their appearance was similar, to the way they sat on the floor, their wide black eyes, the intelligence hidden within, their age...  
_

_That illusion was shattered as the boy opened his mouth. Now, he was more like L. Cold, different, uncaring, socially awkward. This was not like A after all. In fact, they were exact opposites.  
_

_"You are not L." the boy said calmly.  
_

_B snorted, "'bout time you said something. Yes, I'm just a stand-in for L. You can't just expect the world's greatest detective to come waltzing in, and then get killed by the murderer or something."  
_

_Nate remained silent, a disappointed air hung over him.  
_

_"The puzzle to this case had already been solved," he said, "I refrained from telling the police that, because I was hoping that L would come. Goodbye."  
_

_B waved back in mock-happiness, "Bye bye, Nate River," he sang.  
_

_Nate stopped in his tracks.  
_

_"If you want, I could take you to L," B continued, knowing that he got Nate's full attention.  
_

_"... How did you know my name?"  
_

_"Promise to come with me?"  
_

_"How do I know if this is not a trap? Possibly from the killer?"  
_

_"For one, you have already solved the case, therefore you knew who the murderer is already," said B, "Second, L is listening to our conversation right now. He's just across the street, right about... there."  
_

_Nate's head whipped up, spying a B-lookalike from over there. "You are L's twin?"  
_

_"No."  
_

_"Didn't you say that L did not come 'waltzing in'?"  
_

_"He's not. He's not even near the crime scene." B said smugly. "Can we go now?"  
_

_Nate simply glared back.  
_

* * *

L sighed deeply, coming back into present time. It was midnight already, and everyone was asleep. The flames from the fireplace had been doused. The living room was filled with snoring and deep, depressing silence.

He buried his head into the pillows and listened to the rain pounding down the windows, the crackling thunder in the distance, and small scuffles of Mello rolling around in his sleeping bag.

In the darkness, nobody could see a single tear rolling down the detective's face.

* * *

**Trivia: This is the longest chapter in the story, with all the flashbacks and a total of 5424 words. Chapter 12 is shorter by about 800 words, and the number-three-longest-chaper is chapter 1 with 2648 words. The rest are all around 1000 words.  
**

**IMPORTANT NOTE: I have altered the events in the L.A.B.B case. It will not be called the L.A.B.B murder cases in the chapters because it was not B who did it. Also, Quarter Queen is not one of the victims, she died on her own. Blackberry brown was one of the likely victims in the novel, but replaced Quarter Queen here, and Beyond is still Ryuuzaki, but not the killer.  
**


	8. The Morning After

**=ch8=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 8: The Morning After  
_

_The world is indeed full of peril and in it there are many dark places.  
But still there is much that is fair. And though in all lands, love is now  
mingled with grief, it still grows, perhaps, the greater._

* * *

"We are almost out of food," Watari announced at the dinner table, "and the storm's not creasing."

There were two seats empty - Matt had not woken up yet. It was sobering to see the sight, as any one of them could be the next target for Kira. And who knows what could happen this time? Kira's attacks seemed to get more drastic each time.

There were two days worth of food, and seven people. It would be 42 servings. The first day, with the absence of Matt, 18 servings were eaten. The second night, 15 with Beyond dying. That left 9 servings for the third day, barely enough for the day if they share 3 servings with each meal. But that's only if the storm ends on that day. If id did not...

They would surely starve.

"We have to start saving up," L said quietly, his voice raspy.

"I think Light shouldn't get any!" Mello said stubbornly, "He injured Matt and killed B, so why should he get their food?"

"Mello!" Watari chided. The blond boy looked away, his gaze still challenging as he refused to back down on his accusation.

Light hung his head down, eyes brimming with tears. He poked at his food, eat even less than what he should have.

They went through more cans of food before Near suddenly paused, and frowned.

"The food is not a much as it should be," he said, "We should have nine left, but there's seven."

"Strange."

The rest of the breakfast was spent in silence. Everyone ate only half of what they should be eating, leaving 7.5 servings for the rest of the day, though Mello still sent Light dirty looks.

Watari announced that they got the morning off for time to grieve for B. Nobody made a sound, they all looked solemn.

Near was fiddling with his teddy bear, as if moving something inside. He was totally concentrated on his work, as if distracting himself to the reality of B's death.

Mello wondered what he would tell Matt when he wake up. The news of B's death was devastating on all of them, and he didn't know how Matt would fare. So to keep his mind off depressing matters, Mello began to plot the death of Kira, who he was convinced was Light.

Watari sighed as he watched the children. They were just running from the truth, distracting themselves with other matters and wouldn't face the cold, hard fact that nothing they did would bring B back. Hatred is a cycle that would never end, and he didn't want to get any of them involved in it.

L was trying not to listen to the quiet sobbing coming from Light. It grated on his nerves, especially when Light was the only suspect they had for Kira. It was just a matter of time to prove he was, no matter how good an actor he was.

And what did Beyond want to tell him before he died? Something about Light, L remembered. Perhaps he wanted to tell them that he had finally found evidence pointing Light to be Kira?

No, that couldn't be it, because it was only after dinner when Beyond had that look of dawning realization, as he rushed off to confront Kira. Had he died while seeing Kira's face? Or was he like Matt, attacked from behind?

Most important of all... What was L going to tell Naomi Misora?

"I'm not Kira, I'm not Kira..." Light whispered to himself, "I didn't attack Matt, I didn't kill B, I didn't... It wasn't me! L, tell Mello it wasn't me!"

L stiffened at Light talking to him, and a rush of anger ran through him. How could Kira even dare to _talk_ to him, after he killed B, L's best friend? And he was denying it, and L wasn't going to fall for it anymore.

"Don't talk to me," L murmured, getting up swiftly and leaving the room. He stormed through the hallway and to the direction of the library, where he could have his time alone. He felt tired, tired of case, tired of his friends getting hurt and dying, tired of accusations and the tension everywhere.

Light seemed to freeze up, a cold feeling turning over in his stomach. He felt like throwing up as he sensed hostility in the room. Now even L hated him, and he didn't know what Matt would do when he wake up.

Mello opened his mouth to speak, but Light was through with taking all the verbal abuse over the past two days. He was sick of being suspected, and how nobody gave him a chance. Light ran into the room, into the opposite direction of where L went.

Watari went after Light, leaving Mello in the living room with Near and a sleeping Matt.

The blond-haired boy felt a chill, and turned back to find Near staring at him with his icy gaze.

"You really are an idiot," Near said simply, returning to building a house of cards that used to be the 'Go Shinigami' (formerly known as 'Go Fish') games that they played the first night.

Mello flushed, but didn't answer. He felt a sense of guilt of causing Light to break down like that. But that's justified, right? Light is Kira, he killed B, he hurt Matt, so he deserved it. So why did he wanted to apologize to the boy?

"I'm going to find L," he said, "Are you coming?"

Even though Mello agreed with L about Light being Kira, he still felt a bit of pity for the boy. Because of the constant pressuring, Light had cracked, and that reminded Mello of a certain somebody who died in the Wammy house.

It all came down to A, didn't it?

Meanwhile, Watari caught up to Light. He was worried about the child, and Watari knew without a doubt that Light was _not_ Kira, despite all the evidence.

The chestnut-haired boy curled up in the corner of the bedroom, his head against his knees as he continued to stare at the dried blood spilled on the carpet. There, in the wall, was another tiny infinity symbol.

"Watari," Light's voice was choked, "Are you here to arrest me? You think I killed B?"

"No," Watari embraced the boy, "I have believed from the start that none of you are Kira. I am sure that Beyond also knew that, whatever he tried to do before he was killed."

"Did L hate me now?"

"I... don't know the answer to that question," Watari said quietly.

Light nodded.

"I remember when L and B tried to get me to join them," he said with a sad sigh, "If I could go back to that day again, I would join in a heartbeat."

"They would find that suspicious, and would arrest you on the spot," Watari laughed.

"Dad would kill them for doing that." Light replied. The mood was lightning, and he swore he almost saw a single beam of sunlight poke through the clouds, even when he could still hear the splatter of rain.

* * *

(Unknown place)

Near walked down the hallway alone. He had split up with Mello a while back, when the loud-mouthed blond was searching for L. He slipped away unnoticed, and was now heading towards his destination.

Near's teddy bear was not with him, and Near had deliberately left it back in the living room, cleverly hidden under a bundle of pillows.

Now, he will reach his destination, no matter what.

* * *

(Somewhere Else)

Person1 looked around in confusion. Person1 got up and started walking in a random direction. Person1 noted that the air was getting colder, like he was going deeper into the mansion.

Then Person1 tripped over someone, someone he instantly recognized.

"What are you doing?" Peson1 asked curiously to the second person lying on the floor. Person2 groaned.

"G'away..." Person2 muttered. But then Person2 bolted upright. Eyes widened as he saw Person1.

"I'm up!" Person2 shouted, "Let me get a change of clothes first, and I'll meet you by the library. That should be where L is."

"Why are we meeting L?" Person1 asked curiously. Person2 rolled his eyes.

"You know why," Person2 said, "L is the next target."

* * *

**Ahhhhhhhh! I missed the deadline!**

**Sorry guys, I had a bit of a mix-up with my date, and now this chapter is updated one date later than usual! SORRY!**


	9. Consequences be damned

**=ch9=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 9: Consequences Be Damned  
_

_Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the universe_

* * *

Mello walked briskly towards - ah hell, he didn't really know. He didn't know which way L went, through the long corridors and twisted paths. It was very easy to get lost around here, and he was cursing the fact that Watari was not here with him.

"Darn it!" he swore as he came across another dead end, "Just where the hell am I!"

He had no choice but to keep going. But this house was just too big. The floor creaked ominously as he stepped on the tiles, and Mello sneezed at all the dust floating around.

"Well," he muttered, "Someone's not doing a good job at housekeeping."

He made another few turns, and was pleasantly surprised by the bedroom door that greeted him. "Huh, seems like I didn't get lost after all," he said.

The room was still splattered with blood at the entrance. B's blood. Mello shuddered, took a deep breath, and leaped over it.

Before B had died, he had been on to something. Hadn't he said that Light's diary was the key to the case. But they had searched he entire house for it, and coming up with none. The only place they hadn't checked was the bedroom, as the image of B's unmoving body flashed in their minds every time they tried to enter.

On the bed- no. It was not on the desk either. Maybe inside? No, just a couple of cobwebs and old underwear.

Ugh.

"Where is L anyways," Mello muttered, "This will be much easier to find with him around."

"M-Mello?"

Mello had to stifle a scream as he spun around. Finally, he saw the person who said his name and cast a glare over to him.

"What do you want, Kira?" he sneered.

Light glared back, "Excuse me if I feel worry that you have been gone for so long."

"I got lost."

"From the kitchen to here?"

"Where did you go anyways?" Mello demanded, "L is gone, did you take your time trying to kill him?"

"STOP SAYING THAT!" Light shouted furiously, "I am sick and tired of your accusations against me all the time! I hate the fact that I couldn't contribute to the case, and that someone is obviously trying to frame me. You are just trying to find a scapegoat for Kira!"

"Prove it then!" Mello yelled back, "Prove it to me that you are not Kira! Find the diary!"

Light stiffened, then glared, "No." he gritted out.

"Why the hell not?"

"Be-because you are not going to understand! I wrote gory stories in there, so you will find some ways to pin them on to the evidence of me being Kira!"

"So you're saying that if I find your diary, I will find the evidence that you are Kira?"

"No! I am not Kira!"

"So you say," Mello continued searching the room, only to pause as he spotted the edge of a black cover poking out from under Light's bed. "That must be it."

"What..." Light gaped, "It wasn't there before when I searched for it!"

"Oh, spare me your lies," Mello waved dismissively, "Now, let's see what is so important about this 'Death Note'.

He flipped open the pages.

* * *

_Dear Diary_

_I love the title! It sounded very badass and like something that you could use to kill people. I know, that's not a good thing to think about. But, maybe if I expel all my anger here, I could be the perfect son that dad wanted.  
_

_This is given today to me in my anger management class. Ryuk looks ugly.  
_

_Enough of this stupid rambling! I will be using this notebook to write stories! To those who dares to READ my diary, well, they would've done something that deserves me writing about their deaths!  
_

_-Light  
_

* * *

_Dear Diary.  
_

_Matt hogged all the internet to himself and his video games when I desperately needed to get my homework done! I need my research!  
_

_I can imagine what he'll do if his video games ever became a reality! He would have drowned in a haunted house ages ago! He would have gone to the washroom for some reason or the other, and then BANG! Somebody hit him over the head and tries to drown him! I'm saying 'trying' because if he dies then Mello would have killed me. So there!  
_

_...Huh, actually worked, not that angry now. I guess I'll continue those small stories then.  
_

_- Light  
_

* * *

_Dear Diary,  
_

_Beyond is a jerk.  
_

_Today he followed me around and started sprouting off numbers!  
_

_"That's the day you will die," he said in a creepy voice and a disturbing grin. Grr.  
_

_Why the hell did he say that? Did he want me to die? If HE wants it that much then he could go die somewhere too! Perhaps by a serial killer, that would be ironic. I'm bad with names, so let's just go with Kira, the English pronunciation of Killer. He could be on some sort of a case, then was stabbed in the heart. I hear that vampires die from a stake to the heart, and I'm not sure if Beyond's one or not. Black hair and red eyes and all that.  
_

_You know what? This writing stuff is fun! And those are only stories, I could do whatever I want!  
_

_MUAHAHAHAHAHAA! I AM GOD!  
_

_Yay!  
_

_-Light  
_

* * *

_Dear Diary  
_

_L is an atheist. Sigh.  
_

_Ah well, if I am god, then any non-believers will go, too. Besides, this is just stories, what harm could it do?  
_

_So L will get kidnapped by one of his old enemies (he has a few) and then... Hm... I actually like L, so I'll give him a relatively painless death then! He didn't actually anger me today, so I'll be lenient. I guess a shot to the head will be quick.  
_

_See ya! Tomorrow Watari's picking us off for that sleepover at L's summer house!  
_

_-Light  
_

* * *

Mello gave Light his best exasperated stare, "So this is nothing special? Just a plain ol' diary of a whiny little kid?"

"Hey! You're younger than me!"

"And you are acting younger than me, which is quite a feat."

"So you believe me now?" Light asked, "I - for the last time - am NOT Kira!"

"But you did include Kira in B's part of story," Mello pointed out, "And... shit..."

"What is it"

Mello growled, "Damn it! Just when I started believing you aren't Kira!"

"What! What is it?" Light cried frantically.

"This!" Mello shouted, "I found a pattern! Every thing you wrote in here came true! Matt almost died from drowning in a washroom! B died from stabbing done by Kira! And now, L... L is in danger!"

Light froze, realization coming clear on his face.

"I've got you now, KIRA!"

* * *

**I bet you were all expecting that, eh? Stay tuned for next week!**

**I'm sorry for the late update, but it's CHRISTMAS so I thought I'd do it today.**

**... So basically I forgot and is completing this as soon as I could.**

**Merry Christmas!**


	10. L is for Lost

**=ch10=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 10: L is for Lost  
_

_As black imbued black, so was rendered the pitch of darkness  
That befogged this godforsaken yard of graves -  
And too the dank, 'til now forgotten chapel that  
Did little to grace these forlorn grounds._

* * *

"I've got evidence! There is no slipping out of this, Kira!"

"HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU THAT I'M NOT KIRA!"

"Really! How do you explain the stories, then?"

"Someone may have stolen my notebook and framed me on purpose!" Light said stubbornly.

"I'm not believing that."

"Screw you."

"When we find L, I'm turning you in. So you'd better tell me who is the second Kira!"

"I told you, I don't know!"

The two continued to bicker as they neared the kitchen. Watari was brewing tea, and an untouched plate with strawberry cake was on the table. It was melting, the frozen icing slowly dribbling down onto the plate, creating a sloppy mess.

"Children," Watari interrupted them, "Have you seen L?"

He looked tired, although looking for something the entire morning. Many hiding places were turned over, and the the oven was upside down for some reason.

"-and because of that, he's going to be shot!" Mello was yelling, gesturing wildly. He then noticed Watari, "Oh. Hi."

"...L is not here?" Light asked, feeling dread pool at the bottom of his stomach. He had a sinking feeling that L probably wasn't going to return, especially if he was going to be 'kidnapped and shot' as stated in his diary.

Watari sighed, not aware of the importance of the information he was giving out, "Yes. He still hasn't come back from that temper tantrum he had at you, Light. Sorry."

Mello huffed, "What do you have to feel sorry for him for? It's his fault L is gone!"

Light dipped his head down, ashamed. It probably was his fault. He had listed Matt, Beyond, and L in stories that was about how they _died. _It was sickening, now that he thought hard on it. And Kira had used that information to attack them. He hurt Matt, he killed B, and he was responsible for L being missing.

"Mello," Watari chastised, "What happened to L?"

The two kids froze.

"We have evidence that L has been kidnapped by Kira." Light said in a small voice, fearing Watari's wrath.

"We found Light's diary, and there are evidence." Mello waved the black notebook about.

Watari was quiet as he read over the pages. No emotion could be seen on his face, "L went to the library." He finally said, "You can begin your search there."

He left the room, and neither of the kids knew what he was thinking about,

"Hey," Light said suddenly, "Where was Near?"

This was a striking moment of realization as the two went silent. They both stopped abruptly and thought for a moment, before Mello jumped to his feet angrily, dashing down the hall with furious determination.

"Damitdamitdamit..." Mello cursed under his breath, "Near was Kira after all, or maybe second Kira. He must be Light's accomplice..."

"Mello!" Light called, "Wait up!"

Mello didn't even look back as he ran towards the direction of the library. They passed rooms, stairs, secret passages, and-

"Wait! Secret passages! Maybe that's what the Kiras used to sneak about without being detected. And there must be secret rooms underground as well. Maybe a hidden basement."

Light tried, but he really couldn't keep up with the hyperactive seven-year old through the twists and turns and forked roads. Ultimately, he got lost.

"Curse that maniac," he grumbled as he stormed around aimlessly, "Couldn't he do some thing as nice as to _wait_?"

He sighed as he took the Death Note out of his pocket. Light stared at the jagged letters on the cover.

"You have caused me a lot of trouble." he told the diary. There was no reply (which was expect, and if the notebook _had_ said something then Light would have screamed).

Without thinking, Light reached down to the black cover to rip it in half. His fingernails scraped against the sides, straining against the cardboard-like texture.

"What is this thing made out of." Light grumbled, giving up. It was impossible, like the notebook refused to be destroyed before it accompolish one final task. But that was impossible because books don't have a mind of their own. It was not like the Death Note was a notebook that could kill by someone writing a name inside.

(In an alternate universe A.K.A canon, Raito Yagami sneezed before writing Lind L. Taylor's name down in the Death Note. Ryuk just laughed.)

Light shook his head. Nope, totally impossible.

"L was heading towards the direction of the library, so perhaps there was a secret room under there too." Light poundered, "So Mello and I started in the kitchen, which was seven rooms away from the library. If every room had a secret passage or room underneath, then I could probably find my way down here too."

And hopefully Mello realized that too, because Light would never dare to confront Kira on his own.

Yes, ladies and 'gents, a part of the mystery of this case is solved:

Light Yagami is 100% _not_ Kira.

* * *

**Since this is AU, Death Note is only an ordinary diary, not the killer notebook in canon. I used Raito for Canon!Light's name to distinguish the difference between them.  
**


	11. Human Reaction

**=ch11=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 11: Human Reaction**  
**_

_The third proved problematic. Until the case reached its end, I was reduced to nothing but an absent gaze. Think of it this way: I was a pair of abstract eyes walking around wearing my flesh as a disguise. Living as such, there was no point in expecting any form of social responsibility or human reaction.  
_

* * *

Mello was reaching the end of the rope.

Everything was definitely _not_ going smoothly as he hoped. He had been so sure that Light was Kira, that he hadn't considered the other possibilities.

In short: Mello screwed up.

"Near, that big-headed twit. You are dead when I catch you!" Mello grounded out. His voice echoed through the empty stone passageway underground. There was no way of telling where he was now, but Mello refused to give up.

"Wait... Are those stairs? That must mean that it there are secret rooms and underground tunnels everywhere!" he exclaimed. If he could go up, then he could get to the library in no time!

There was a problem though, if he went to the library, he would have no idea where the secret room was located. He didn't have the time to search, either. So he had to travel underground.

The seven-year old poked his head out, but saw nothing familiar. He cursed, but climbed out anyways. And he was lucky he did, because on the outside there was a map stapled to the house. He was a only a few hallways away from his destination, give or take a few turns.

"C'mon, Light, we're..." Mello trailed off as he realized that he had left Light behind sometime ago.

"...Never-mind, I'll apologize to him later." he grumbled. And he had more than one thing to apologize for, which irritated him. Mello was never wrong, and Light should have been Kira. But he made a mistake and now L was in danger.

Mello memorized the map, went back to the underground tunnel, and charged forward. There was no time to waste, and he will find Kira and beat him up.

* * *

"Why did you pin maps all over the house?" Person1 asked Person2.

"It is very easy to get lost around here," Person2 said sagely.

"Where did you even get a map from?" Person1 asked curiously.

"L has them in his room. It's his summer house after all."

"Is that why you were gone during the morning?"

"Maybe."

"Where's L?"

"Gone."

"Gone? You mean by...?"

"Yes."

"Let's go, then."

* * *

Light was running full force down the hall and didn't realize that someone was in front of him, just getting down the stairs.

OOF! Both of them fell over, and Light was sent sprawling on the ground.

When he got up, he noticed Watari sitting up and rubbing his head as well.

"Watari? What are you doing here?" he asked.

"I should have watched L more," Watari sighed, "After much thought, I decided that going alone would be too dangerous for you all."

"Do you think I'm Kira?" Light asked quietly, almost dreading the answer.

"No," Watari smiled at the boy, "I've spent time with you all, I know that none of you have the resolve to kill."

"Have you killed before?"

"Regretfully, yes."

Silence lapsed between them as they continued on their way. Finally, Light spoke again:

"Thank you for believing in us, Watari."

"No problem, Light."

* * *

"Hello." a light but childish voice spoke into the phone.

"Who is it?" A much older, male voice responded.

"It's me. You should recognize my voice."

"Boy? Why are you calling me? Shouldn't W-"

"They're busy now."

"Alright. What do you want?"

"Send ten people over."

"Thirty? Are you serious?" the man gaped.

"Deadly serious."

"What could they have done to make you demand thirty people to go-"

"I am taking no risks. Please, the sooner the better." There was no joking around in the child's tone.

"Sigh, you got it, boy. I'll get them in a sec."

"I prefer you get them _now_"

"How urgent is this? Because I will not be ordered around by a child!"

"If you don't accept this and be ordered around by a child, then keep your mouth shut. People are going to die if you keep on stalling." the boy said coldly.

"Fine, fine. I'll hang up now."

"Remember, thirty people."

Click.

* * *

Even as Mello ran, the sense of foreboding got worse. He felt as if something was not right, like there was still something that he missed.

Kira. Kira. Kira. Kira.

The thought ran through his mind over and over again. Mello wracked his mind, piercing all the clues he knew from the previous days, but nothing came to mind.

The chance of Near being Kira is rapidly decreasing. For once, Near had been with them the entire night of Matt's attack, and he was with them when Beyond was found dead the second night.

But who, then? Mello cursed himself for focusing so much on Light the past few days. He was so obsessed in finding Light guilty, that he didn't notice anything else other than the clues that pointed to the chestnut-haired boy.

If Light isn't it, then who is?

B had managed to solve it, he had it all figured out before he was killed. Mello tried to remember everything about L's red-eyed copy.

B. Kira. Diary. Death. Bedroom. Beyond Birthday.

Now he was just rattling words at the top of his mind, hopelessly trying to pierce them together.

Blood. Eyes. Infinity. L. A. BB. Death Note...

Wait a minute.

Infinity. LA. Eyes. Death Note. Kira.

Mello had solved the case.

But it seemed that he may have done it a bit too late. Mello ran, faster than ever, intending on reaching the steel doors that he was certain had Kira behind it. Would he get there in time? Would L be dead when he open the door?

Mello fired several bullets at the lock. It hit dead in the center and shattered.

Mello hurled himself in,

* * *

L opened his eyes.

He was tied to a chair, and in a room he didn't remember. But they must still be inside the mansion, because the storm made it impossible for any traveling.

Speaking of which, he really wanted a piece of cake now. He wondered where Watari is.

"Good evening, L."

L's head instantly snapped up as he stared, surprised, at the revealed face of Kira.

_"You._" he hissed.

* * *

**Have you seen this quote before...?**

**Not that it's important, but tell me if you recognized it! I'll reveal where' it's from in next chapter.**

**Only two more chapters to go! The epilogue is included.**

**Sorry I didn't update on Sunday. I forgot to and I was preparing to return to school...**

**Last chance to try and solve the mystery before everything is revealed next chapter!**


	12. I Hear the Bells

**=ch12=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

* * *

_Chapter 12: I Hear the Bells  
_

_I love thy music, mellow bell,_  
_I love thine iron chime,_  
_To life or death, to heaven or hell,_  
_Which calls the sons of time._

* * *

"Infinity and X," L murmured. "That's right, you were from Wammy's House. Friends with A and B. You left some years ago."

He didn't mention the other time that he had heard of the two, because if he thought about it, he would come to a conclusion that he definitely would not like. Because if they are here, that meant that they are Kira and had killed... He really had to stop thinking.

Perhaps there was another solution, another way that explained why two of his former pupils had killed the third one. There was a ... 0.08% of that, though.

8. Eight. Infinity.

If you turn 8 sideways, you will get the infinity symbol. Kira had left it there, at both scenes of crimes, almost tauntingly, mocking the world's greatest detective to solve the picture puzzle it had left behind. L had subconsciously held himself back from solving it, because deep down, he knew who Kira was. And he did not like the results of his deductions.

Infinity was a tall and lanky boy with long, silver hair and golden eyes. He wore a black coat and tied his hair on the back. He looked 16 or so, the same age as L. Malice glistened in his eyes as he glared at L with contempt. Infinity wore black, with a gun strapped to his belt and narrow, calloused hands.

X was a woman, younger than Infinity. She had black eyes and long, wavy red hair that she wore freely down to her shoulders. A single jade earring was pinned to her left ear, and she wore heavy makeup on her face. Her figure was slim, though she held a look of madness in her eyes, like an inner hurricane of anger and resentment that had been bottled up all those years.

Five years...

L remembered seeing them through the camera lenses through his laptop. The detective was only eleven years old at that time, but he was already a rising star in the world of justice. Police praised him, the press had once tried to hunt poor Watari down and take off his clothes (some wanted to see his real face. Others, well...). Wammy's House already existed then, and he visited once in a while to have conversations with the students. A, B, I, and X were best friends. A and B had the most potential, so L had focused his attention on them. He had not remembered those two to help them out of the road to revenge.

"I assume that Light is not Kira after all," L continued, "You framed him, you attacked Matt, you killed B."

"Finally he got something right, give the detective a round of applause," X said sarcastically, "Just shut up and die, bastard. We're not going to tell you anything."

"Oh? So you would resist the chance to gloat, after all, you got what you wanted," L said plainly.

X opened her mouth to speak, but was silenced by a look from Infinity.

"X, don't. He's tricking you," He turned back to L, "You have failed, L. You have made a mistake in your deduction on Kira's identity, you have fallen into our trap. Now you're here alone without help. You are going to die, and guess who will take the blame?"

"Light," L guessed. There was this sinking feeling that Mello would instantly blame Light for his death, and while L wasn't afraid at the thought of dying, he knew the truth now, and nobody else did. He had to find a way of showing Light's innocence. He himself had made a mistake, and there had to be some way of righting it. Perhaps Near would talk reason into Mello, but that never worked in the past.

Speaking of which, what are Light, Mello, Watari, and Near doing right now?

X faced Infinity, "Can we kill him now? The sooner we do that we can-"

BOOM

The steel doors _blasted_ open. Smoke erupted from the wreckage as the lump of useless metal fell down, riddled with bullets and holes. Piles of debris fell to the floor, like scorched pieces of what used to be a cupboard, chunks of the ceiling, dripping water of the leaking pipes that were hit by the bullets. The puddles that quickly formed on the ground quickly reminded L of Matt, and made him wonder if the child was awake now.

Someone stomped in in a rather angry and familiar manner. There was a bit of coughing from all the dust from the mess, like they hadn't expected for the door to do that.

Mello.

L's spirit lifted at the side of the blond. Now that Mello's here together with Kira, his suspicions on Light would be cleared. But then he realized that Infinity would not just let them walk away like that, and there are only 67 percent of surviving this encounter.

"ALRIGHT! COME OUT AND TASTE MY BULLETS! KIRA!" Mello's battle cry left the people near him wincing at his loud volume. The blond in leather stormed through the wreckage that he caused, kicking aside some of the lumps of metal that was in his way, then cursed out loud when he stubbed his toe.

"Do that and we'll shoot him." Infinity said coldly. He took out his own gun and aimed it at L. They were a few meters away, but L had no doubt that Infinity had been training his marksmanship for years for this moment. He would not miss.

L suddenly remembered what he wanted to do before Mello came in, and now was the perfect time. Though if Mello found this place, then where was Near, Watari, and Light?

"Mello!" L shouted. Mello's head whipped back in surprise. L had never raised his voice before, and it was a very unfamiliar sound, "Light is not Ki-"

"There you go, this is much better than before," X told the detective sweetly as she gagged him. "Now, kindly shut up."

Now all attention was focused on Mello. L was worried, suddenly not confident that his voice had reached the blond child before being silenced. What if Mello hadn't heard?

"I knew that already."

What?

"The Death Note, we've found it." Mello continued. He was not even focused on his speech anymore, his sentences forced out as if he desperately wanted to say it. "From that point on, nothing matched up. If Light was Kira, then he would never follow a script to be so predictable, especially when B mentioned he had read all of it. L went missing while Light was with Watari. Near disappeared then, so that placed suspicion on him instead. But now theories aren't needed, the real Kiras are standing before me, and that's all what matters."

X angrily took a step forward, "I say screw this situation and shoot them both!"

Infinity shrugged, "Might as well." He took aim at Mello.

"NO!" somebody shouted, and tackled Infinity. The two wrestled on the ground, fighting for the gun. Infinity fired a few shots, but they all missed ad impacted on the ceiling, bringing more dust down.

The person coughed, and Infinity used the time to flip over, and shot the bullet, right at the person's head-

- only to be blocked by a diary.

Light clutched the smoking Death Note in his hands. There was a round hole straight through the middle, and the motionless bullet fell harmlessly on to his lap with a plop. The chestnut-haired boy trembled as he stared at the now harmless piece of metal, as though he could not believe he came so close to death.

Watari walked in from the doorway also. He quickly freed L and pulled him to safety, but their attention was mainly focused on the Kiras. L filled Watari on the situation here, and vice versa. Watari explained about the Death Note under the bed, the secret passage, and how Light tried to destroy the notebook, but failed.

Infinity clicked his gun again and everyone tensed - only to find that he had ran out of bullets.

"Damn notebook," Infinity growled, "Should have destroyed it when I got the chance."

"You're the one who stole my notebook?" asked Light, whose voice was oddly high.

"We stole it after hearing B say about those stories, and you were the perfect scapegoat for Kira," X smiled maliciously.

"You- you were the ones who killed B!" Light shouted.

"Blame yourself," Infinity shot back, "we simply used _your_ ideas from _your_ diary. Haven't you imagined them dying? Weren't you the one who created this Kira in the first place?"

Light shook his head in denial, but the look in his eyes said it all.

"Hey, stop ignoring me!" said Mello, "Now that we got the real Kira and second Kira here, I finally get the chance to beat you up! So stop focusing your attention on Light!"

That was Mello's way of saying: We're sorry we made a mistake, now leave Light alone.

"X," Infinity commanded, "Bring it here."

"Sure," the psychotic woman cackled, before handing over a device with a red button in the very middle. "They're all yours."

"Thanks, X," Infinity smiled, then turned to the spectators. "I have planted twenty-five bomb all over this mansion. With this device, they will all explode in unison. The house will collapse, and you will all die."

"You're bluffing." cried Mello, "You'll die too!"

"I don't care," said Infinity. There was a hint of madness in his eyes, "All that matters is for L to die. We dedicated our lives to it, and we will avenge A!"

L frowned, "I doubt A will be happy you killed B," he pointed out.

"B had given up! He sided with you, the enemy!" X shouted, "There's no hope for him. He's just a ghost of the past - something that needs to be put at rest."

L clenched his fist in anger, Light frowned and looked at his diary again, Mello looked ready to punch Kira, and Watari was looking behind them in shock.

"A ghost, am I?" there was a click as Person 2 loaded the gun and pressed it to X's head, "Imagine that."

"You click the button, your partner suffers L's intended fate, got that?" Person 2 continued.

L, however, like the rest of them, were frozen. He turned a very pale shade as he saw...

"Beyond Birthday! I thought I killed you!" Infinity howled in anger, all composure lost. His face was twisted with rage as he snarled at the backup.

Beyond grinned, gun still in hand, "I'm still here, aren't I?" he asked, then he turned to L.

"Sorry, Lawli. I was out for a while. Miss me?"

"You..." L was still staring wide-eyed, "Watari, pinch me and tell me I'm not dreaming."

The old man sighed, and complied, "L, you're not dreaming."

L rubbed his bruised arm and continued to look at Beyond with disbelief. "B, I thought - you got a knife in the _heart_! You should be dead, this is not- I-"

Beyond frowned, "Calm down, Lawli, before you get a heart attack," he said, "I did tell you before that I am half-shinigami. I can _only_ die by old age or other natural method like starvation or suffocation, things like that. Otherwise, it hurts like hell and knocked me out for a while, but I'll survive."

"It doesn't matter!" Infinity shouted, making everyone jump, "You expect me to care for X more than our goal for revenge on L? I couldn't care less about here!"

"Infinity-" said X, hurt evident in her eyes.

"Shut up," he growled back, "I will press this button, and blow everything up. Even if your white-haired friend is not here, you will all die anyways."

He pressed the button.

* * *

Person 1 ran hurriedly down the hallway.

"Holy shit I'm late!"

* * *

By now, all of you readers should know who exactly Person 1 is. If you don't, well... read on then.

Yet another person tumbled in to the room, tripping over all the debris caused by Infinity's gun-firing and Mello's entrance. Beyond had to kept himself from rolling his eyes, he had to keep his attention on X after all.

"What a dramatic entrance," he opted to say instead, "It's about time."

"Hey, no fair!" Person 1 cried, "You ditched me to run ahead!"

Mello looked back at Person 1 in relief, "Matt! "

L interrupted, "I'm glad you're awake and all, Matt, but we're going to be blown up any second now."

Speaking of bombs, Infinity meanwhile was pressing the button again and again in disbelief.

"How? The explosion is instanous! The mansion should have been blown up the second I pressed it!" he shouted in disbelief.

"Oh, those things were the bombs?" Beyond blinked as he remembered something. "Matt took them down. He woke up, then found me sleeping in the basement. We were trying to find L because he's the next target, but on the way, Matt's 'electronic senses' were tingling, and being deprived of those for so long, he just had to hunt them down and fiddle with them." He gestured to the blinking device that was still clutched in Matt's hands.

"Um... whoops?" Matt laughed nervously.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed of, Matt. You did brilliantly," L told him seriously. Despite the seriousness of the situation, Matt smiled at the praise.

"Now, to to beat up the sucker!" Mello cried triumphantly as he darted towards Kira, punching him square in the forehead. Infinity flew backwards, propelled by the force of the blow. The two wrestled, with Mello sitting on Infinity and punching him again,

X took Beyond's moment of distraction to elbow him in the chest, right on the wound. The bandages ripped and Beyond fell to the ground. Droplets of blood spilled on the floor as pain raced across his body, making it difficult to move.

"It's rude to hit an injured man you tried to kill!" he yelled from the floor, unable to get up because of his wound.

"It's rude to press a gun to a lady's head!" she screeched back.

"You killed me!"

"You're alive here, aren't you?!"

"A normal person won't be!" his leg rose, catching her off balance and sent her tumbling. Beyond then kicked her savagely in the shin. He was kicked in the face with painful plastic heels, but didn't let go of her ankle. Beyond tightened his hold, and X let out a yell.

"Stop fighting!" L called out irratably, "We really need to get those two in custody right now, and Mello and B are just goading them into escaping!"

"We don't know if the storm's over yet, and we can't use telephone here." Watari pointed out.

L nodded, "I have a hunch-"

Matt snickered.

L glared at him, "I have a hunch in what Near is doing. Watari, do you have his bear here?"

Watari nodded, pulling out Near's polar bear plushie. "It was lying in the living room."

L smiled, "Good."

Matt looked puzzled, "Why?"

Right after he said that, there was the sound of multiple footsteps as people stormed in _again._ Police came, the thirty of them filling the room and quickly arresting Infinity and X before they could do further damage. The passed by the gaping Mello and slightly bloodied B, past L, past a concerned Watari, and past a very relieved Yagami Light.

It was over.

They all survived, the Kiras were gone now.

Near sat on the leading policeman's shoulder, sleeping soundly. His eyes blinked open lazily as he peered around the room they're now in.

"I knew you did it!" he declared as his eyes landed on Beyond.

"I'm not Kira, or did you not see those two that were being handcuffed right now?" Beyond scowled as he pointed towards the criminals. "Where were you?"

"He went through the woods all alone through the storm! Such a brave child!" the officer continued to coo over Near. It seems that the five year old had charmed him enough to worship him. Now that Near had minions in the police, and was one more step closer to take over the world!

(In the canon universe - again -, Raito Yagami felt a chill run down his back as he played tennis with this so-called Ryuga Hideki)

Beyond smirked and whispered to L, "In short: the storm stopped and he took a 5-minute walk to that village at the back, called the police, and found us by a tracking device in the stuffed bear - all high and mighty like he saved the day or something."

"At least I did something, Mr. fake-my-death-and-let-others-worry!" Near retorted.

Beyond's grin only widened, "You worried?"

L dragged Beyond away, "That's enough, B." he said. "We're going home, and pretend everything here _never happened._ Got it?"

"Aye aye, Lawli!"

L smiled, "and B?'

"Wha-"

L punched him.

"THAT'S for making us believe you're dead."

Beyond rubbed his bruised jaw, "Y'know, I sorta deserves that..."

Light snorted as he passed them to pack up. "I still deserves an apology, people."

* * *

**The End!... Except for the fact that there's still an Epilogue left. But anyways, plot twists and happy ending!  
**

**I'm sorry if I failed to meet any of your expectations... Bringing in two OCs in just seemed TOO absurd for the ending, and too sudden. But the characters are limited and Light clearly is not Kira, and I can't make any of the characters we know to go to jail... so... SCAPEGOAT TIME!  
**

**I went to ski yesterday. That's why the chapter's late.  
**

**And now, a super long author's note awaits to explain everything in the previous chapters:  
**

**=Ch1=  
**

_Luckily, the distance between here and the next town is very close. If they get past this house and through the other side of the woods, there would be a village with plenty of food and a police station there. There are also phones, but only out of the woods. Watari spent the next few hours showing the children around the town, and have them memorize the path from there to back._

Here I have hinted about the police station and phones, and the fact that everyone knew where it is.

I also avoided mentioning Light while the others were playing card games or whatever by the fire. But in case you're wondering, he had realized that his notebook was missing and was looking for it in the bedroom.

_"Of course they are," Beyond snorted softly, "Believe it or not, I'm a Shinigami-human hybrid. Which is why I have red eyes and can see names and life-spans of people."_

_"Liar."_

_"How sad," Beyond said sarcastically, "Don't come crying to me when you're dead and didn't listen to my warning, Lawli."_

Beyond had mentioned the half-shinigami thing here, so don't say I didn't warn you about his survival!

_But none of them knew that what Mello had said was true, they were being watched._

_A person hurried back to an unknown place, and started plotting._

Yup, that's Infinity.

**=ch2=**

_Electronic withdraw," Beyond commented casually, "He's having quite the break-down."_

_Of course, this was a normal occurence, so there was no need for alarm. Whenever Matt was grounded from his electronics, he always struggled through the week like this. The Wammy boys were used to it, and honestly, this was a bit funny._

There's that electronic withdraw that ultimately leading to him saving the day! Hahaha... Matt could sniff out electronics like a bloodhound when he's in his withdraws. That's why he could find all those bombs!

_And L didn't like that, so he burned them. Beyond had laughed because he was positive that L liked being creepy, and did not want competition. But only L noticed the discomfort in Beyond's eyes as he eyed the pile of smoldered paper, and only the two knew why._

Well, we know now. Beyond had a bad run-in with fire on the LA case, remember?

_"Hey, where's Matt?" Light asked. He had just came in and was looking around the room. Heads turned toward him and L briefly wondered where he was during the hour. Light's normally neat hair was a bit out-of-place, and he was panting like he had just ran a marathon._

That was Light running around the house trying to find his diary. He just noticed it missing and was worried that Beyond might have thrown it away somewhere.

**=ch3=**

_"I told Watari to make some sandwiches," L stated, "He's in the kitchen."_

_"For an hour?" Mello asked harshly, "He could have sneaked out and then attacked Matt without anyone knowing!"_

Watari was also making hot chocolate, and a cake or two for L. Things like that takes time.

_Every single eyes focused on Light._

_"I... I was in my room. Reading."_

_"You could have done it. None of us saw you tonight, and you could be lying."_

Light lied because he didn't want to cause a big commotion to look for his notebook, because he knew people will be offended and thought him responsible for the attack.

_"Which ones did you read?" Light demanded. He sounded... Scared?_

_"All of them," Beyond lied. He only read two, one with his own death, and one of L's. His(Beyond's) death was, surprisingly, being stabbed. But now that he remembered-_

_"Do you know where is it?" The chestnut-haired boy asked desperately._

_"No, why do you ask?"_

_"...Nothing." Light muttered, staring at the ground._

Another example of Light being scared at the someone else reading his diary.

**=ch4=**

_I shall be telling this with a sigh  
_

_Somewhere ages and ages hence:  
_

_Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-  
_

_I took the one less traveled by,  
_

_And that has made all the difference.  
_

Now you must be wondering why this quote was so important.

First, 'two roads diverged in a wood', there are two choices, two roads. Two conclusions you could have reached. 'I took the one less traveled by', I chose the conclusion that was less obvious, ignore all the facts about canon about the fact that Raito is in fact Kira THERE, and not here.

_"He is correct," said Near. His polar bear plushie was on the ground and he was munching on a slice of toast, "Light is not Kira. If he was, we would already be dead right now."_

_"While there's no evidence to support he was Kira, there's a 63% of him being it," L spoke up, "But the other 37% goes to..." He stopped when Beyond shot him a sharp look._

The other 37% goes to Infinity and X. Neither L nor B wanted it to be true, so they kept denying it until they actually believed that it was not them.

**=ch5=**

_But we can't go out and check the footprint," Light said, "It's too dangerous out."_

_L shrugged, "From this height, I can still determine some facts about that footprint. It was big, but not as much as an adult's. Maybe a teenager, or a person that was naturally short."_

_"There's only one footprint though," said Near, "Perhaps Kira want to fool us to think this way."_

Infinity left those footprints on purpose, perhaps to confuse the kids. His age was pretty close to Light's, so he could easily frame him like this.

_"Hey, L," said Light, "Are there any other Wammy children that are near my age?"_

_"Of course, it's an orphanage for children, which means it's for 18 years and below." L replied easily, "You think somebody followed us here and tried to frame you?"_

Yet another hint about a possible framing from Wammy children.

_"The mirror!" he exclaimed, "That's right, I saw something on the mirror earlier."_

_"Mirror?" L looked interested. "Should have known you to spend your attention on that, B."_

_Beyond stuck out his tongue, "You know, L, the Wammy children idolize you. They tried everything they could to be just like you. Like spending hours on the mirror each day, which was probably why I focused on that. Reflexes."_

_Mello snorted, "Explains why Near always got that creepy L-look in his eyes, and why you look like his red-eyed-twin."_

_"I'm the first on the ranking list, which shows that it works," Beyond shot him a cocky grin._

_They approached the bathroom, still untouched. Nobody had wanted to clean that up, or to spend more time in there. Mello, of course had wanted to stay to try to catch Kira, and L wanted it untouched to preserve the evidence._

_Nobody would have noticed the symbol if it was not for Beyond's sharp eyes._

_Whoever Kira is, they knew them L well._

Here's a hint about the Wammys, followed by the fact that Kira knew L well... Did I make it that obvious?

**=ch6=**

_"Uh, thanks." They did not want to know why Near had got a jar of honey, mostly because they wanted to avoid asking the child why he still carried that bear around. Even though Near was technically a child, it was still weird for someone of his intelligence to carry a stuffed animal around._

A slight suspicion on Near's teddy bear! Near's not that much of a child, you know!

**=ch7=_  
_**

_The LA serial killings were tough, really. Two children from the Wammy house, formerly B's friends, which meant they also knew A._

_A, it seemed funny how she could still cause so much trouble when she was dead. L hadn't known about Infinity and X, because he had been concentrating his attention on B during the funeral. B may have been saved from that destructive path, but those two were not._

Come on, people! I put the freakin' solution in there! So if you didn't pay attention, you may be regretting it now...

**=ch8=**

_They went through more cans of food before Near suddenly paused, and frowned._

_"The food is not a much as it should be," he said, "We should have nine left, but there's seven."_

_"Strange."_

Yup, Infinity and X stole some food, that's why the numbers didn't match up.

_Near walked down the hallway alone. He had split up with Mello a while back, when the loud-mouthed blond was searching for L. He slipped away unnoticed, and was now heading towards his destination._

_Near's teddy bear was not with him, and Near had deliberately left it back in the living room, cleverly hidden under a bundle of pillows._

...which was later found by Watari, just as he planned. That scene was of him heading outside.

_Person1 looked around in confusion. Person1 got up and started walking in a random direction. Person1 noted that the air was getting colder, like Person1 was going deeper into the mansion._

_Then Person1 tripped over someone, someone Person1 instantly recognized._

_"What are you doing?" Peson1 asked curiously to the second person lying on the floor. Person2 groaned._

_"G'away..." Person2 muttered. But then Person2 bolted upright. Eyes widened as Person2 saw Person1._

_"I'm up!" Person2 shouted, "Let me get a change of clothes first, and I'll meet you by the library. That should be where L is."_

_"Why are we meeting L?" Person1 asked curiously. Person2 rolled Person2's eyes._

_"You know why," Person2 said, "L is the next target."_

Person1 is Matt, Person2 is Beyond. Matt woke up in the empty living room, and having being in the mansion (awake) for only a few hours, got lost trying to find the others. He ended up going to the basement, where he woke Beyond by accidentally tripping over him. Beyond remembered about the Death Note and they hurried to rescue L.

**=ch11=**

_"Hello." a light but childish voice spoke into the phone._

_"Who is it?" A much older, male voice responded._

_"It's me. You should recognize my voice."_

_"Boy? Why are you calling me? Shouldn't W-"_

_"They're busy now."_

_"Alright. What do you want?"_

_"Send thrty people over."_

_"Thirty? Are you serious?" the man gaped._

_"Deadly serious."_

_"What could they have done to make you demand thirty people to go-"_

_"I am taking no risks. Please, the sooner the better." There was no joking around in the child's tone._

_"Sigh, you got it, boy. I'll get them in a sec."_

_"I prefer you get them now"_

_"How urgent is this? Because I will not be ordered around by a child!"_

_"If you don't accept this and be ordered around by a child, then keep your mouth shut. People are going to die if you keep on stalling." the boy said coldly._

_"Fine, fine. I'll hang up now."_

_"Remember, thirty people."_

_Click._

That was Near's conversation with Roger for thirty police members.

And after that, it's chapter 12, so no more clues left.

I think that's all, so if you have any more questions, review or PM me.

**~Khorose**


	13. Epilogue

**=ch13=**

**Extended to Infinity and Beyond**

**By Khorose**

**Summary: A vacation in L's summer home became a disaster. L, Watari, Light, Matt, Mello, Near, and Beyond must find out who was responsible. Suspicions arose, danger lurks in the mansion, and Light's the prime suspect.**

**AN: I know some of you might not notice this because it's not in the end of the chapter, but I just want you to know about the quote for Chapter 11. I forgot to mention it in last chapter so I'll tell you now. The quote is the one in the L.A.B.B novel, on the back of the first page!**

* * *

_Epilogue: Extend to Infinity and Beyond  
_

_Beyond Infinity knows no boundaries  
_

_Beyond Infinity is indescribable  
_

_Welcome to Beyond  
_

* * *

"Awww, Lawli, so upset over me?" Beyond cooed as he continued to stuff his clothes in messily into the duffel bag. The boys (along with Watari) had decided that while there were... complications, the 'bonding trip' was a success. The six of them had become closer to each other through the traumatizing event that occurred at L's summer home.

Now they are all ready to go, to leave the darker memories of their time here behind and get the hell out.

Mello was still cuddling Matt and wouldn't let go. Beyond wouldn't stop laughing at that, even after a chocolate bar was chucked at his head. Near decided to keep the plush bear as a trophy of some kind as the reminder of his victory over Kira.

Matt managed to get Watari to hand over his game-boy, and was now playing obsessively and mostly ignoring the choking hold Mello had on him.

Mello, during a break from his constant Matt-guarding (to keep his partner happy and safe. No, get your minds out of the gutter! They're SEVEN YEARS OLD!), had taken the time to apologize to Light for putting him under the constant pressure of suspecting him to be Kira. Light accepted the apology, of course.

The others also apologized, albeit in their own way. Beyond shared a jar of jam (which was never, EVER, heard of before that day, so Light took it graciously), L gave him permission to work on some of his cases, and Near...

...Burnt the Death Note.

Light watched, wide-eyed, as the black notebook erupted into flames. L's garden was on fire, though nobody seemed to care, too mesmerized by the display of the wondrous pillars of fire that shot up into the sky, carrying up some of the charred remains of paper.

Light didn't know what to feel with that. He should have been glad that the diary was gone, mainly it was because of it that the whole thing happened. But then again, it had saved his life. Hadn't Light tried to destroy the book back in the secret tunnels? The diary then had this sense of presence, like it had one final task to do.

Perhaps repairing the damage it caused.

Sure, it was the Death Note that caused Matt to be attacked, B to have almost died, and L kidnapped. But in turn, it revealed the truth to Mello, saved Light, and ensured their success in capturing Kira.

"Thank you," Light murmured, though it was unknown whether he was telling that to Near or the Death Note.

* * *

_"Where were you last week? I tried calling you again and again on the phone, but nobody answered!"_

"C-calm down, Naomi," said Beyond, "I went with my friends together on a secret trip. I'm sorry I worried you."

_"Fine, but you owe me a dinner. So, how was it?"_

Beyond winced, "It went well, but I got... injured and I'm on my way to a hospital right now."

_"Wow, that must be some extreme sports you did."_

"Actually, it rained all the way."

_"How did you get injured then?"_

"...I fell down a flight of stairs," Beyond quickly lied.

_"Oh really?"_ Misora sounded incredulous, _"You almost burnt to death, and you were okay, only to beaten by some stairs?"_

Beyond laughed nervously, "Well, there HAPPENS to be a knife at the bottom..."

Light patted him on the shoulders, "You know that it's not nice to lie to girls," he said.

"What about you?" Beyond retorted, "You would probably do the same to that Misa girl."

Light sighed, "Yeah, I guess. I'm just a hypocrite."

"Light, don't mind the idiot," L called, ignoring the 'Hey!' B sent his way. We all have people to care about. It's alright for you to worry about them. Now about that anger management class, do you think you could get Mello in there too?"

Light laughed, "No, he would probably rip the diaries to pieces just because they all looked like mine."

_"B? Are you still here?"_

"Ah, sorry, Naomi. I was just talking to some friends." said Beyond, "Now where are we? Aha! We were discussing about volume three of Akazukin Chacha!"

_"B, I don't think that's what we're talking ab-"_

"-Shiine was just too cute with his big smile and chibi eyes! Everyone should be like him!"

He could practically hear Misora shudder. _"Thanks, but I'd rather not be."_

"Oh well. I'm a bit busy right now, so I'll talk to you later."

_"Bye."_

L raised an eyebrow, "You liked Akazukin Chacha?"

"You got a problem with that?" Beyond asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Not at all! In fact, I'm a huge fan myself. I liked Chacha the best..."

"Shiine is better!"

"No, Chacha is!"

They were still bickering as they got into Watari's car. The others just sighed and Mello just clung to Matt tighter.

"Are we there yet?" A chorus of voices complained. A black car sped down the dirt road inside a forest. It was still sunny out, noon was quickly approaching, and the mood inside the car was excitable.

The sky was blue and clear, the forest was brimming with wildlife, and the forest trail was fun to go through because of all the bumps.

Their first stop would be to the hospital, where they would drop Beyond and Matt off. Beyond's wound had mostly healed, but it would still do him good for a check-up.

Watari sighed behind the steering wheel. It was not easy babysitting six rowdy kids, and it was practically suicide to confine them all in such a tight space.

L was lazily watching the trees pass them by. In his hands were clutched a cookie, though he ignored it, lost in thought.

Light was playing card games with Beyond. It was a round of 'Go Shinigami' and neither were ready to give up. Near watched them, bored, and stroking his plushie's fur absently.

Beside them in the back seats, Mello purred as he patted Matt's head, contentedly munching on a piece of chocolate. Matt sweatdropped at what his friend was doing, but carried on playing his video games. He had three-days worth of gaming to make up for!

"Go Shinigami." said Light. Beyond only sighed and took out another card from the deck.

"Any threes?" Beyond asked, his eyes twitching. He had gotten yet another card from guessing Light's cards wrong. The kid had a really good poker face.

"Go Shinigami," Light said smugly.

Beyond rolled his eyes, "Che, you must be cheating somehow."

"Am not!"

"Are too!" Beyond shouted back.

"L wannabe!"

"Cocoanut-head!"

"Atheist! "

"Narcissist!"

L twitched, "Is it just me, or did I hear this somewhere before?"

"Boys," Watari said at the front, "My patience is wearing thin. We've got ten minutes left until we get to the hospital. Stop bickering, and settle down."

Everyone fell silent, dreading Watari's wrath. They were quickly reaching the urban area, and out of the forest. The sun shone brilliantly, brightening up their day and their air of victory as they headed home. Or the hospital, whatever.

They had done it. They survived. Kira is in custody.

They won.

They won.

_They won._

"Kids, if I ask you to go back there next year, would you?" asked Watari suddenly from the front seat.

Everybody froze - their eyes widening to enormous proportions of horror and disbelief.

"HELL NO!" They immediately yelled in panic.

* * *

**~THE END~**


End file.
